His Only Love
by RikkuThief15
Summary: Rinoa is starting at Balamb Garden. She makes loads of new friends, but becomes especially interested in the nontalkative guy that she meets. She tries to become his friend, but will they become more than that? What journey will unfold?
1. First Day In Balamb Garden

Chapter 1

First Day in Balamb Garden

The wind blew hard against a young girl's face. She had long brunette hair that reached down to her mid-back. Her eyes were so dark they were almost black. She walked down a road that had a sign saying Balamb Garden was up ahead. This was the school she was to attend. From the outside she looked fine, but on the inside she was all nerves.

About ten minutes later she found herself standing in front of a very large building. It looked like it just kept on going up, like it never ended. "Here goes nothing." She thought quietly to herself as she opened the door to the entrance.

It was beautiful. The entrance was lit by hundreds of lights and the furniture was elegant in design with flowers beside each piece. She walked over to the front desk where a young woman stood going through papers. "Excuse me. I'm a new transfer student from Timber and I'm supposed to pick my schedule and books up here….you know." The woman looked up at her for a moment and then began to ask her for information.

"Your name and ID number please?" She asked politely.

"It's Rinoa Heartilly. Oh, and umm…..I don't know what my ID number is."

"Yes, of course. My mistake. Here it is. You're number 152. The schedule of all your classes are located in this notebook." The woman handed her a black notebook and then told her to head for the Headmaster's office on the third floor.

Walking away from the desk, Rinoa looked around at the building. The ceiling was so high and the hallways seemed endless. "I hope I don't get lost." The elevator door slid open when she got near it. She walked inside and pressed the button with a three on it.

The ride seemed to last forever. Finally, it stopped and she stepped out into a room with red carpet and a large door. Rinoa walked to the large door and knocked. She heard some shuffling in the room beyond, followed up by footsteps. The door opened, but it was not the Headmaster. Instead it was a young girl about Rinoa's age with blonde hair pulled into a tight bun with bangs on either side of her face, and green eyes and glasses.

"May I help you?" She asked with an exasperated sigh.

"I'm a new student here and I was told to come see the headmaster."

"Ah, I remember him saying something about you. He left about fifteen minutes ago. I'm sorry. All he was going to do was show you to your room."

"Oh, all right. I'll just go and look for it on my own then."

"There's no need for that. I'll take you there. My name's Quistis Trepe."

"Hi, I'm Rinoa. Thank you so much. I don't know how I'll ever make this up to you."

"Don't worry about it. It'll be my pleasure." They both walked into the elevator and down to the first floor. Along the way they talked about themselves.

"My father got some new job so we moved here. I guess it won't be too bad though, right? I mean I'm sure I'll make lots of new friends, I hope."

"This place is great. I used to be an instructor here but now I'm just a student again and a SeeD. I also help out the Headmaster as his assistant at times."

"Really? Wow!"

"Oh, and just to let you know. You've made your first friend." Quistis smiled. Rinoa smiled back.

"Thanks. Hey, when will I see you again?"

"I'll be at lunch. I'll see you then okay?"

"Okay!"

Quistis stopped walking. "This is your room. You just go straight through this hallway and yours is the last room on the left. Got it?"

"Got it!"

"I'll see you later then!"

"Bye!" Rinoa waved to her new friend as she ran back up to the elevator.

Rinoa walked towards her door and took her key out. She stuck it in the lock and turned it until there was a loud click. She walked in the room and looked around. Her bed was a Queen size with an elaborate, rich blue and silver comforter, her own large bathroom, and a huge closet. "Oh my gosh, this is awesome!" She threw her suitcase down and ran into her bathroom. "This tub is huge! It's like a mini pool!" A grin came across her face. "I might as well try it out!" She turned the knobs till nice hot water filled up the tub. She pulled her hair up into a high ponytail and folded her clothes neatly on the floor. She put her foot in the water and immediately put in the other and sat down in the steaming water. "Ah, this feels great. After finding my way around, this is the perfect reward." She looked over at her mirror and saw it fogging up. "It's like my own little steam room." She said to herself.

The next morning, Rinoa was rudely awakened by the sound of her alarm clock. She threw her hand out from under her comforter and groped around for the annoying device. At last she found a button and pressed it to turn it off. She slowly climbed out of bed. "It's six in the morning…uh. I don't want to wake up yet." She forced herself to get up anyway and took a shower. After she had dried off she opened her closet door to look at her outfits. "Well, since it's the first day of school, I think I'll wear my school uniform." They weren't required to wear them, but were usually asked to for special occasions.

Rinoa walked down the hallway of the dormitory twenty minutes later, observing everything around her. As she walked past a bench she saw a magazine. She walked towards it and picked it up. "Weapons Monthly…" She read. On the cover were the words, "Special Inside Scoop on the Gunblade!" Suddenly she was startled by whistling behind her. A tall guy with blonde hair and green eyes was looking at her with a large grin.

"Hey there, the names Seifer. You are?" He paused, waiting for her reply.

"Rinoa…Rinoa Heartilly."

"You must be new. How old are you? I've never seen you around here before."

"Yeah, I just got here yesterday. I'm seventeen."

"Really?" An even bigger smile was coming over his face now. "Well, I guess you'll need someone to show you around then."

"That would be great!" Rinoa jumped up at the opportunity to get to know the school and at the possibility of having a new friend.

"Right this way." Seifer motioned for her to follow him. They walked off together side by side. He showed her the infirmary, parking lot, library, cafeteria, Quad, and then took her to the training center. As they began walking through the area some trees rustled nearby. Suddenly a huge Tyrannosaurus Rex jumped out. It's tail had smacked into Seifer and thrown him somewhere in the trees. Rinoa took out her weapon, the Shooting Star. She knew she was not ready for a tough battle like this one. Looking for an escape she ran toward the right, but the monster was too fast. It clawed her leg as she tried to run. She fell to the ground. Her ankle was twisted and bleeding pretty bad.

"What do I do?" Rinoa thought to herself. "I can't get up in this condition. Someone please help me!"


	2. Rinoa's Rescuer

Chapter 2

Rinoa's Rescuer

The T-Rex jumped towards the girl sprawled out on the ground. She screamed as loud as she could, praying that someone would hear her cry for help. She closed her eyes, ready for the searing pain that would come to her once it bit her. Instead, she felt nothing. She opened one eye.

A guy was standing in front of her, sword drawn, ready for battle. A wave of relief washed over her. Some one had heard her. The T-Rex shot a ball of fire at them. The guy jumped out of the way, but Rinoa was right in its path. She quickly rolled to her left side and dodged it. The mysterious guy moved fast. He summoned the Guardian Force Shiva and blasted the monster with ice magic. Within five seconds, the beast was on the ground. Scared, it ran back off into the forest.

Rinoa stared in shock. The guy in front of her turned around and looked down at her. He had dark brown hair with a scar across his face, black pants with two belts crossing each other at the center, and a black jacket with a white shirt on underneath.

"Thanks…you saved my life." Rinoa said in a shaky voice. The guy didn't say anything, he just walked towards her and tore off a piece of his shirt and began to wrap it around her ankle. Rinoa was speechless. She didn't know what to say. "He's kind of rude because he won't say your welcome, but it's sweet that he's wrapping up my ankle for me." She thought to herself.

Surprisingly, he picked her up in his arms and began to carry her out of the training center. "Wait!" Rinoa cried. "What about Seifer?" At this question the guy stopped. An angry look came over his face.

"Seifer…he's here?" Rinoa looked at him in surprise. He had finally said something. She shook herself out of her thoughts and answered.

"Yeah, that monster's tail smacked into him when it jumped out at us and he flew into those trees!" The guy was silent. In fact a very little smirk seemed to appear on his face.

"He'll be fine."

"What? What do you mean he'll be fine? How can you say that? Don't you have any feelings at all?" He was silent at her questions and just kept walking.

About ten minutes later they were at the infirmary. Dr. Kadowakki was wrapping clean linens around Rinoa's wound. "Thank heavens you found her Squall before she was finished off." Rinoa cringed as the dressings were pulled tightly for a snug fit. "I'm sorry dear. I know it hurts. What's your name?"

"Rinoa Heartilly."

"Ah, you're the new transfer student. I'll tell Headmaster Cid about this incident to see if we can have that monster taken care of."

"Thank you." At last Dr. Kadowakki had finished wrapping her ankle.

"Squall, please take her back to her dormitory." Squall gave her a look of annoyance, but nodded his head. "Thank you." She said.

Squall picked Rinoa off the infirmary bed and walked out the door. There was silence on the way to the dormitories until Rinoa spoke up. "So, your names Squall?" He didn't answer. "I'm Rinoa." Still he said nothing. Rinoa rolled her eyes.

During the next five minutes there was silence. Then finally, he talked. "Which one is your room?"

"The one on the very end on the left!" Rinoa smiled at the fact that she knew exactly where her room was. Squall continued down the hallway until he reached her door.

"I need your key."

"Oh yeah, sorry." Rinoa pulled her keys out of her pocket on her uniform. "Here you go." He took the key and unlocked the door. He walked inside and placed her on her bed.

"Thank you so much. I'll have to make this up to you."

"……………."

"Don't you ever say anything?" Rinoa gave him a questioning look. Squall looked at her for a moment and then turned around and began to walk toward the door. "Where are you going?" Rinoa asked.

"My room." With that he walked straight across to the room in front of hers.

"His room is right there?" Rinoa said in shock. "Well, I guess I can go call on him whenever I need his help."

Her alarm clock awoke her once again the next morning. She got out of bed and walked to her closet. She grabbed a blue jean skirt and dark blue halter top. She rewrapped her ankle with fresh bandages and put on two inch platform sandals. "There, now I just need a necklace." With that she ran to the bathroom and grabbed her chain necklace and then ran out her door.

As she was walking toward the cafeteria for lunch, she saw Seifer. "Seifer!" She called out to him. He turned around and smiled when he saw her.

"Are you alright? I was so worried about you."

"Yeah, thanks to that guy Squall." At these words a strange look came over his face.

"Squall…did he say anything to you?"

"No, all he said was whatever." A relieved look came over his face.

"Anyways…I've been wanting to talk about you and me." He said, a large grin on his face.

"Yeah, what about us?"

"Well, I don't know about you, but I like you a lot Rinoa."

Rinoa smiled. "I like you too Seifer." This made Seifer smile bigger.

"That's why I think it's time for us to become better acquainted with one another." Rinoa didn't understand at first, until he grabbed her around the waist, pulled her towards him, and kissed her. Rinoa struggled and then finally pushed him away from her.

"What do you think you're doing?" Rinoa yelled.

"You said you like me and I liked you so…"

"Yeah…I like you as a friend. You're such a jerk!"

"Hey, nobody calls me that!" Seifer grabbed her arm and yanked her towards him.

"Hey let go!" Rinoa screamed.

"She said let her go!" A deep voice came from around the corner. Seifer let go of Rinoa's arm and looked up. Rinoa fell to the ground and looked, too. Standing there was Squall.

"Oh yeah? What are gonna do about it? Huh? Is little Squall jealous?" Squall remained silent. "It's probably because he knows he couldn't get a girl to go out with him no matter what!"

"You're wrong!" Rinoa yelled at Seifer as she stood up from the ground. "He could too! You're the one who wouldn't ever have a date if you treat everyone like that!" Squall looked at her with a shocked look on his face. Seifer's face was getting red at her yelling this at him.

"Why you!" He raised his fist toward Rinoa. She closed her eyes waiting for impact. Nothing happened. She opened them to see Squall standing in front of her, Seifer's fist in his hand. "Let go Squall!"

"First, promise you won't touch her again!" Seifer gave him an annoyed look.

"I don't keep my promises. You of all people should know that." Seifer jerked his hand away and ran off down the hallway.

"Are you okay?" Squall had turned to Rinoa now.

"Yeah, I think so. I can't believe that just happened to me."

"Don't be surprised. Seifer's a jerk. He's always been like that."

"Now when I think back to the other day, I'm really glad you left him in those trees. Thanks again for helping me out. Now I really owe you one."

"Don't worry about it….and thanks for sticking up for me…..no one's ever done that."

"Oh that, well I do think you could get a date, I mean you are….ah….never mind." Squall gave her a questionable expression.

"Whatever."

"Yup that's Squall alright. Wait a second! He said thank you! Wow!" Rinoa thought to herself.

Rinoa walked into the cafeteria, finally going to do what she had been planning to do since this morning till that interruption in the hallway. She walked through the line and got bacon, eggs, and peanut butter toast. She looked around the table and saw Quistis smiling at her from a table in the middle. She ran towards her smiling.

"Hey what's up?" Quistis said as she saw Rinoa.

"Not much." She looked around the table at the other people sitting with Quistis.

"Oh, sorry. I forgot to introduce you. This is Zell, Irvine, and Selphie." Zell hade blonde hair that spiked up. Selphie wore a yellow dress that went to about mid-thigh. Her hair was brown and flipped out. Irvine had red hair, a cowboy hat, and chaps. Rinoa got the impression that Selphie and Irvine were going out due to the fact he had his arm around her.

"It's nice to meet all of you!"

"You too!" Everyone said.

"Hey did you know that we all grew up together?" Said Quistis. "It was in an orphanage."

"Yup, those were the days. Me, Quistis, Selphie, Irvine, Squall, and Seifer." Zell said.

"Whoa! Hold on. Did you just say Squall and Seifer?"

"Yeah." Replied Zell. "What about them. Do you know them?"

"Yeah, well sort of. I've met Squall a few times, and Seifer, I don't want to think about him right now."

"Join the club." Said Zell. The rest of breakfast was pretty normal. They talked about fighting styles for a while. Then Zell and Irvine started fighting about weapons. As Rinoa looked around the cafeteria, she saw Squall sitting alone in the corner.

"Hey Zell?"

"Yeah?"

"Does he always sit alone like that? I mean, I thought you guys were his friends."

"Who Squall? We are. He just doesn't like to socialize much."

"Yeah…" Rinoa sat lost in thought. An idea had popped into her head. She was going to perform a secret operation later that night.

It was ten thirty. Everyone else had gone to their rooms for the night. Rinoa sat on her bed, ready to take action in her plan. She was going to go to the bench where she saw the magazine the other day and take it. Then she would go to Squall's room to give it to him thinking that it could be his…if it wasn't, her plan would have failed.

She peeked out of her dormitory door and down the hallway. The lights had all been dimmed for the night. She made her way through another hall till she reached the bench. As she got closer she saw that the magazine was gone. "Great! What am I supposed to do now?" She turned to walk away when something shining caught her eye. She walked toward the bench and peered behind it. There was a ring with a picture of a lion on it. Upon examining it in her hand she looked at the inside. Words were written across it.

"Let's see…what does it say?" She said out loud to herself. "Commander…umm…Leonhart! That's it! Now all I need is a list of names to know who to return it to. Hey! The infirmary has a list of names of every student in the garden! I can go there!" Rinoa ran off down the hall till she got to the infirmary.

She peeked through the door. Dr. Kadowakki was no where to be seen. "Phew! The coast is clear." She ran inside and over to the desk. She opened up the desk drawers until she found a clipboard with names. "This is it!" Her eyes skimmed down it. "Hey look! It says that Seifer had a head injury from that attack the other day! Yes! He deserved every bit of it!" She continued down through the pages. At last she spotted last names with Leon in it. "Let's see…Leonburn, Leondore, Leonfay, and Leonhart! Yes, I found it! The first name is…oh my gosh…Squall? Squall Leonhart? I had no idea he was a commander!" Now she knew she could continue on with her original plan.

She snuck back to her room and looked in her closet. She grabbed her blue shorts and tank top pajamas. Then she put her hair into a ponytail to make it appear as though she had been sleeping. "I can't believe I'm going to do this. I'll have to explain to him why I'm giving him his ring this late at night most likely. Here goes nothing." She took a deep breath and ran out her door and stood outside of Squall's room. "I wonder if he's asleep. Please don't be mad if you are!" She thought quietly to herself.


	3. Rinoa's Plan

Chapter 3

Rinoa's Plan

Holding her breath, she knocked on Squall's door. She heard deep breathing and then footsteps. "Oh crap! I think he was asleep!" She shifted her feet around nervously. After a few more seconds, the door opened. There stood Squall with his usual black pants on and the white shirt he wore under his jacket. The shirt was kind of tight to where she could tell he had very well defined muscles.

He looked out of his door at her. Rinoa smiled up at him. "Hey! This afternoon I umm…found something that belongs to you. I figured you might want it back. So, can I come in?" She gave him another smile.

"Fine…" He opened his door wider and she walked in. He shut the door and stood against the wall. "Why did you wait till eleven fifteen at night to tell me this?" Rinoa sat down on his bed.

"Well, I had other things on my mind and forgot about it. When I got back to my room I remembered. I was going to wait till morning, but I couldn't sleep. That's why I decided to give it to you now!" Squall stared at her with an empty expression.

"I'm waiting." He said.

"Waiting? For what?" Rinoa asked confused.

"Whatever it is you said belongs to me."

"Oh yeah, right." Rinoa's face flushed a little. "I can't believe I just did that. I'm so stupid. I forgot that I had his ring!" She thought to herself. "Here you go. It's a ring. Rinoa pulled it out of her pocket and held it over to him. He grabbed it out of her hand and put it on his nightstand. "The least you could do would be to thank me!"

"……Thank you…"

"There, that wasn't so hard now was it?" Rinoa smiled. She was doing a great job so far. He was talking. "So, where did you get that ring from?" Squall looked at her for a few seconds before replying.

"No where…I made it."

"Wow! Really? That's incredible! It looks awesome!" At this reply, Rinoa saw a small smile form on his face. Rinoa swung her foot back and forth on the side of his bed. She gazed around his room. He had the same size room as her but the comforter was black and silver. In the corner of the room was his sword. "So, is that what you use to fight with? It's a really big sword!"

"It's not a sword…it's a gunblade."

"Hey! I saw that on the cover of a magazine the other day. It was in "Weapons Monthly!"

Squall was a little surprised at her interest in everything. First asking about his ring and now his gunblade? It was kinda weird, but nice at the same time. He'd never really had anyone to talk to about all of this.

Rinoa stretched her arms above her head and yawned. "Well, I better go get some sleep. Thanks for the company. I'll be sure to stop by again. Goodnight Squall!" Rinoa waved goodbye and closed his door behind her.

Back in her room she pulled the covers up close to her face. "Wow. My plan worked a lot better than I thought! I got him to talk and open up a little bit more." She thought to herself.

The next morning she woke up early from the sun's rays beaming through her curtain. She went to the cafeteria for breakfast and then left for the training center. When she arrived she saw Squall finishing off a group of six grats with one hit. She ran towards him, a smile on her face.

"Hey Squall! What's up?"

"…………"

"Yeah well, anyways, that last move you did was awesome! I wish I could do that!"

"Thanks…"

"You're welcome. Hey…I was just wondering if maybe you would want to you know, eat lunch with me today." Squall was startled by this question. It was totally unexpected.

"Well, I uh….I guess so, I mean, maybe."

"I guess so maybe?" Rinoa said laughing. "Does that mean yes or no?" He was quiet for a few seconds.

"Sure…" He said as he began to walk off.

"Hey, can't I talk to you for just a little bit?"

"You can at lunch." He replied

Rinoa smiled. "It's a date then!" Squall stumbled a little bit when he heard this. Before he could comment Rinoa had already run off.

"Great…" He said to himself. "Did she really mean a date? Like a date, date?"

At lunch Rinoa sat down at a table with grilled chicken and a potato. She was looking in every corner of the cafeteria for Squall. "Maybe I shouldn't have said that date comment. It might have scared him away." She took those words back as she saw him sitting alone at a table on the far right of her. She got up a walked toward him.

"Hey! It's time for our lunch date!" Squall who was drinking water suddenly choked.

"Are you okay?" She asked with a concerned look.

"Fine." He said quickly.

"So, Squall…what level are you at?"

"62."

"62? There's no way! That's so high! I'm only a 54. You must be good." There was an awkward silence for about one minute. "Hey Squall? I have a question. How come you never told me you were a commander of the Garden?"

"It wasn't important. Besides, how did you find that out?"

"Well, when I was trying to figure out whose ring it was it said Commander Leonhart on it so all I had to do was see who had that last name. It must be really hard. You must get stressed out and lonely."

"Well…" Squall's answer was cut short as Zell ran up to the table.

"Whoa! Did I miss something? Are you actually talking?" He stood there with his mouth hanging open.

"Is there something wrong with that?" Without waiting for Zell's answer, he stood up and walked off.

"Thanks a lot Zell!" Rinoa rolled her eyes and began to stand up.

"I'm sorry! I just wanted to see him socializing with my own two eyes. Besides that, why are you talking to him? Huh?"

"Well because I…I…" Rinoa could feel her cheeks turning red.

"Oh man! Don't tell me! You like him don't you? I can't believe this! Why him? He never talks to people and tries to ignore you!"

"Hey! I didn't say I liked him liked him. He's a good friend, that's all. Besides, I'm sure if you just gave him more of a chance he would talk to you more, too!" With that said she walked out of the cafeteria, leaving Zell standing there watching her walk away.


	4. The Party

Chapter 4

The Party

Rinoa sat quietly in the back of her magic class that day. She had not heard one thing her teacher had said except that when you use your magic that you face it at the exact angle needed for it to hit your enemy and not you or your allies. She couldn't concentrate on any of her lessons. The conversation she had with Zell yesterday made her worried. "Did he tell the others?" She wondered.

After class was over she sat down on a bench in the hallway. "I wonder how Squall feels…does he like me?" She was deep in thought when Selphie came running towards her.

"Hey Rinoa! Have you heard?"

"Heard what?"

"There's going to be a school dance. Everyone gets to dress up and wear lots of jewelry and have a romantic dinner! I'm waiting for Irvine to ask me!"

"A dance, huh?" Rinoa thought quietly to herself.

"So do you have an idea of who you want to ask?" Selphie asked her.

"Oh, no. I still don't know many people yet."

"Oh, well, I'll keep my eye out for you!"

"Thanks." With that Selphie ran off down the hall. "Has Squall heard about it?" She thought. "Maybe I could…no…I…I can't. I'll just go by myself…" Rinoa stood up and ran down the hall to the dormitories. She ran into her room and threw open her closet door. "I don't have anything to wear for that dance. I guess I'll go shopping later. In the mean time…" She grabbed a pair of short shorts and a tank top. Grabbing her weapon, the Shooting Star, she ran off for the training center.

When she got there she killed a couple of grats and then ran to the side of the path. "What should I do? I'm so confused about my feelings. When I'm with Squall, it's like all my worries fly away. I feel safe. What do I do? I've never felt like this before." She could feel a tear fall onto her cheek. Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around quickly.

It was Squall. He stood there, with a hint of concern. He looked at her face and saw a tear. "Rinoa…" She quickly wiped at her face and smiled.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me…I just…I…I need to go. See you around." She then ran off. Squall stood there confused.

"I wonder if she's really okay. I wonder if I'm okay, too. Ever since she came here I've been different. I can talk to her. Does that mean that I… that I…no…it can't be."

Rinoa dragged her feet down the road in Balamb city. Suddenly her eyes opened wide as she saw a store with beautiful dresses in the display window. "I can look for a dress in there." She thought to herself. She ran inside.

The store had hundreds of dresses. She grabbed around ten and ran to the dressing rooms. She didn't like any of them till the last one. It was long and cut at the bottom like a salsa skirt, with off the shoulder straps, and a veil to wrap around her arms. The best part was that it was her favorite color, blue. She bought the dress and made her way to her room back at Garden.

As she walked toward her dormitory door she saw Squall's door was open. When she got in front of her room she looked in his. He was standing in front of his mirror, adjusting the bow tie on his tuxedo. "I guess he heard about the dance." Rinoa thought to herself. "I wonder who he asked."

Squall finished his bow tie and saw Rinoa standing in front of her doorway in the reflection of his mirror. He turned around just as she closed her door. "Dang it! I was too late! I knew I should have asked her earlier." He thought.

Rinoa pulled her dress out of the bag. She took off her clothes and put them in her closet. Then she slipped into her exquisite new dress with sequins sparkling in the lights. She went to the bathroom and put her makeup on. Then she curled the ends of her hair and put her chain necklace on. She looked at herself one more time and sighed. "Time to go." She wished she had asked Squall as her date earlier.

She opened her door and stepped outside. When she turned around after locking it, she saw Squall lock his and turn around. Squall's eyes opened wide. There Rinoa was, her hair curled, long blue dress, veil around her arms, and off the shoulder straps. She smiled at him. His voice choked when he tried to speak. Rinoa started to walk off down the hallway.

"Wait!" Squall gained his voice back. Rinoa stopped and turned around to face him. "Rinoa!"

"Yes? What is it Squall?"

"I…I…I uh…" Squall stumbled over his words. "I was wondering if you would…if you would…" He closed his eyes and blurted out, "If you would want to go to the dance with me."

Rinoa had never felt so happy in her entire life. She had got what she wished for. "Yes, of course I will. I would love too!" Squall opened his eyes, surprised at her answer. For the first time since Rinoa had met him, she saw him really smile. He held out his hand for her. Rinoa smiled and took his hand. They walked off down the hallway until they reached the Quad.

As soon as they entered, music had begun to play. Squall led her out onto the dance floor. "Squall…I'm shocked. You dance?"

"Yeah…it's part of training."

"Of course. Isn't everything?" Squall put his hand on her small waist and his other hand took hers. They began doing the famous dance of Balamb Garden. Rinoa was smiling the whole time.

After the music stopped they took a break. Rinoa looked off to the side and saw Quistis, Selphie, Irvine, and Zell standing in a corner of the dance floor talking. "Hey Squall, let's sit over here. We don't want them to see us together. Zell will bother us the whole time." She pointed to where everyone else was standing. Squall shook his head in agreement.

Rinoa sat down at the table with Squall. He gazed at her with a look Rinoa had never seen in his eyes before. "Rinoa…."

"Yeah?"

"You look really… really beautiful…" Squall seemed to blush a little bit.

"That's so cute! He's blushing." Rinoa thought to herself. "Thank you."

They smiled at each other for a few seconds. Rinoa then saw refreshments at the table at the other end of the room. "Hey Squall, do you want some punch?" Squall looked over where she was looking.

"Yeah, sure." Rinoa began to stand up. "Don't worry about it. I'll get you some." Squall said. He was gone for about five minutes. When he returned he was holding two ice cold drinks. They sat down at the table to finish their refreshments until the music started playing again. This time it was a slow song. Rinoa glanced sideways at Squall, wondering if he would slow dance with her. To her surprise he had his hand held out. She took his hand.

Rinoa put her arms around his neck and Squall put his around her waist. Butterflies were racing through her stomach. She never thought this would ever happen. It was like a dream. When she was in his arms she felt so safe and warm. Squall didn't know what to do either. He had never actually slow danced with anyone before. Sure, girls had asked him, but he had always rejected their invitations.

As the music slowly ended again, they separated from one another. They stared into each others eyes. Rinoa was so nervous. "Was Squall going to kiss her?" Her heart sped up. Squall's face got closer to hers when all of a sudden the lights went out!


	5. The Kidnapping

Chapter 5

The Kidnapping

Everyone screamed. Rinoa could feel Squall pull her closer to him. Laughter broke out in the darkness and echoed throughout the Quad. Rinoa felt something touch her. The next thing she knew she could feel herself being carried away. She screamed. Squall yelled, "RINOA!"

Squall ran through the darkness, not having a clue where he was going. Then he saw a door open and a man running out of it. He ran as fast as he could through the door and in to the hallway it led to. The man was running away in front of him. Squall picked up speed and caught up to him. He pushed him down on the ground. Then he picked him up and slammed him into the wall.

"Where is Rinoa!" Squall asked the man. The man he was holding was cowering.

"I don't know! I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Yeah right, that's why you're running away like a thief!" Squall pulled out a small knife from one of his pockets and held it up to the man's throat. "You better tell me now or else…!"

"Alright! Alright! She was taken by Seifer!"

"Seifer! What does he want with her?"

"I don't know!" Squall held the knife closer to his face.

"Okay! He said he was jealous that Rinoa liked you better than him!" Squall stared at him for another minute.

"Where are they?"

"He's down in the basement. It's been his secret headquarters ever since Master Norg died." Squall let him down from the wall and clenched his fist.

"You will pay for this Seifer!"

Rinoa opened her eyes to see a room that was quite dark. There were dark blue lights on the wall and weapons, too. She tried to walk but realized she was chained to a wall. As soon as she began to struggle, she heard laughter. She turned her head around quickly looking for the source of the voice. "Sorry about that…we had to use a sleeping potion on you so you would stop moving." Rinoa couldn't believe it. It was Seifer.

"You! What do you want with me?" Seifer smiled.

"It's simple really. I want you because I like you…a lot. You should know that."

"Yeah, you like me so much you try to hurt me?" Seifer laughed.

"That was me merely trying to make you obedient." He walked toward her and lifted her chin up so he could look her straight in the eyes. "You will be mine no matter what you say. No one will come to help you."

"You're wrong! Squall will come! I know it!" Seifer laughed an eerie laugh that echoed in the room at this.

"That guy? Please! He probably doesn't even know you're gone. Forget him. Let's get back to us!" A wicked grin spread across his face. This time Rinoa couldn't stop him or push him away. He pulled her chin up to his face and kissed her. Rinoa couldn't stand it. Rinoa struggled, but it was no use. He finally released her and began laughing again. "Don't worry Rinoa dear. I'll always be here for you." He ran his hand down her arm. "I'll make all your sadness and pain go away."

Rinoa glared at him. "I hate you! I could never love you even in your dreams!"

As Seifer turned his back, the door to the room blew of its hinges. Rinoa closed her eyes. Seifer fell to the ground but stood back up immediately. "Who dares come in here uninvited like this?" He stared at the entrance. Coming out of the smoke was Squall. His gunblade was out, ready for battle.

"I told you he would come for me!" Rinoa yelled at Seifer. Seifer glared at Squall, but then smirked.

"Hey Squall! You really didn't have to break my door down you know. There was no reason to. Rinoa's perfectly happy here with me. You can see for yourself."

"Squall, don't believe him!" Rinoa glanced frantically at Squall. Seifer was walking back at her. He grabbed her chin and kissed her again, right in front of Squall! Rinoa felt tears running down her cheeks. "This is wrong! I don't want him to touch me! Squall, please save me!" Rinoa thought desperately.

Squall got even angrier. He gripped his gunblade till his knuckles turned white and gritted his teeth. "How dare he kiss her in front of me!" Squall said to himself. Seifer released Rinoa and grinned down at Squall.

"Awe, it looks like little Squall is jealous! Looks like she chose me instead of you!" He laughed. Squall couldn't take it anymore. He leaped up at Seifer, gunblade drawn. Seifer dodged out of the way and grabbed his gunblade from off the wall hooks holding it. "So, you came back for another souvenir? You could have just asked instead of barging in here!"

Seifer lunged out at Squall. Squall did a back flip and then brought his sword around fast, cutting Seifer's jacket. Seifer then retaliated with a Firaga spell. It flew towards Squall. Squall threw up his sword to try and block it. It hit it and flew sparks in his eyes and then bounced at the wall. The room began to catch fire.

"This is just like before now isn't it? You on the ground and me laughing at you in victory!" He threw his head back in laughter. Squall rubbed his eyes to get the fire's sparks out of his eye. His vision was blurry. Seifer threw his blade down at Squall. Rinoa closed her eyes, not wanting to watch the devastating sight.

Squall saw the blade. "Not this time!" He yelled. He grabbed his gunblade within seconds and blocked Seifer. He then did three combo attacks till Seifer fell to the ground exhausted.

"How? This can't be happening! I will get even with you one day! Just wait and see!" He then healed himself with a curaga spell and ran off.

Squall stumbled up the steps toward Rinoa. "Rinoa…" His vision was still blurry from the fire attack.

"Squall!" He followed her voice till he could see dark gray chains. He used his gunblade on the chains and she fell to the ground free. Squall stumbled over. "Squall, are you okay?" Rinoa said quickly.

"Yeah, I'm fine…are you okay?"

"Thanks to you." Rinoa looked around and realized that the room was still on fire. It had been pretty far off from them until now. The heat was creeping closer and closer. Rinoa gave Squall a potion and then put his arm around her. They stumbled toward the exit. Rinoa put Squall down on the ground and turned to face the burning inferno within. "I hope this works!" She closed her eyes and concentrated. She stuck her hand out and pushed it forwards and yelled "Water!" A huge wave of water burst from her outstretched hand and engulfed the room. Within seconds, the fire was gone. "I did it!" She said.

She then turned back around and gave Squall another potion. He stood up feeling refreshed. "The fire!" He yelled.

"Don't worry! I took care of it." Squall turned around and looked at the now damp room.

"Great job." He said.

"Really? Thanks!" They walked back to the elevator and to the first floor. When they reached their dormitories, Rinoa stopped and turned to Squall. "Hey Squall?"

"Yeah?"

"What did Seifer mean that you want another souvenir and that this is just like before?" Squall was silent and then sighed.

"Before you came here, Seifer and I were in a fight. We were supposed to just be training, but knowing him, he went all out. He shot me with a fire spell just like he did back there. Then he brought his gunblade down and it cut across my face. That's why I have this scar…I cut him back after that on his face."

Rinoa was silent. "I'm sorry…I didn't know. What a jerk! So he was basically saying that the souvenir was a scar?"

"Yeah…" Squall stared at Rinoa. "Sorry about your dress." Rinoa looked down noticing that it was burnt across the bottom and the fabric cut on her midriff.

"It's okay. Don't worry about it." Squall turned on his heel and began walking off towards his room.

"Goodnight…Rinoa."

"Wait!" Rinoa said. Squall looked over his shoulder. "I never got to tell you. You looked really handsome tonight."

Squall smirked a little bit and walked towards his room. Rinoa smiled back. "Goodnight!" She walked into her room and closed the door. Without changing she lay upon her bed. Somehow, through all that had happened that night…it had been the best night of her life.


	6. The Secret Revealed

Chapter 6

The Secret Revealed

The next morning when Rinoa woke up, she didn't remember what had happened the night before. Then she saw the burnt dress she was still wearing. "Oh yeah." At the thought of last night she smiled. Squall had asked her to the dance and even danced with her twice. It was awesome. She felt as if she was floating on air. Then, when the lights had gone down, he had pulled her closer to him. She wished she could be there in that moment again. Before the lights had gone out they had been looking at each other. "I still wonder, would he have kissed me if those lights hadn't gone out?"

She walked to her bathroom and turned the shower water on. Then she stepped inside and let the water rush over her face, clearing her thoughts. After she got out she put her makeup on and went to her closet. "I want to where something special today." She rummaged around through her clothes until she found the perfect outfit. It was a pair of light blue jeans, and aqua and yellow shirt that showed her stomach. "It's flirty, but not too outgoing."

She was able to concentrate in all of her classes that day. On her Magic exam she got a B and on her fighting test, an A. Nothing could make her feel bad today. Everything was going her way so far.

At lunch, she found Quistis and the others. "Hey guys, what's up?" Everyone stopped and stared at her.

"Aren't you dressed mighty fine today!" Said Irvine. Selphie punched him in the ribs with that comment. "Come on Selphie. You know you're the only girl for me!"

"I think it's really cute!" Quistis smiled at her.

"Thanks." Rinoa sat down and began eating her ham sandwich. She looked around the table. Everyone else was talking and eating accept for Zell. Instead, he was staring at Rinoa, with a curious expression across his face. Rinoa stopped and gave him the same look back.

"Rinoa…can I talk to you for a second." Zell said as he stood up. Rinoa put her sandwich down.

"Yeah, sure." She stood up and walked to another lunch table in the far corner of the cafeteria. When she reached the table she looked at him with concern. "Is something wrong?"

"No…nothings really wrong…I'm just curious."

"Curious? Curious about what?" Rinoa was totally lost. "What is he talking about? I'm so confused." She thought to herself.

"You know the dance last night?"

"Yeah…what about it?"

"I saw you there…"

"Oh really. That's cool. I don't recall seeing you." Rinoa started to fidget around with her foot nervously. "If he saw me with him, Squall might never come near me again!" She thought.

"Yeah, I did. You were sitting down at a table as if you were, waiting for someone…"

"Really, I didn't go with anyone. Sorry to give you the wrong idea. Umm…Bye!" Without looking back she ran out of the cafeteria.

"Something's fishy here. She's up to something, I know it." Looking to see if his other friends were watching, he ran out of the cafeteria, following Rinoa.

Rinoa ran all the way back to the dormitory hallway. She stopped at her door to catch her breath, her hands on her knees. "At least he didn't see me there with Squall!" She stood back up and turned to face Squall's door. "I haven't talked to him since the dance. In fact I haven't seen him either." She walked to the dark oak door. She knocked twice.

Zell ran down the hallway. As he rounded the final corner, he saw Rinoa. He stopped to watch. "What's she doing? That's Squall's door!" He continued to spy without her knowing.

Rinoa waited. No one answered. She knocked again. Still no answer. "Oh well, I guess I'll check again later." She walked back to her room and closed the door.

Inside her room she cleaned her bathroom and reorganized her closet. She sat on her bed, putting her hand against her face, her elbows on her knees. "What should I do?" I'm so bored. I don't have any homework, we had tests and I passed them all. Maybe I should just take a nap. Just for about thirty minutes."

Zell sat behind the corner of the hallway, still waiting for Rinoa, to see what she was up to. "Man, it's been forty minutes! I could sit here all night!" The minutes ticked by. Zell was beginning to doze off.

Rinoa stretched out on her bed. "Ah, that was a good nap. I should take one more often." She looked over at her clock. "Whoa! I slept for four hours! That definitely wasn't a nap. Great, now I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight. It's already nine!" Rinoa sighed. "I wonder if Squall's back now…maybe I should go check." She jumped off her bed and opened her door. The halls were silent. "Everyone must be in their dorm rooms." Rinoa thought to herself. Little did she know, Zell was just around the corner.

Rinoa shut her door quietly, but jammed her toe in the wall. "Ow! That was really stupid!" When she hit the wall it made a loud noise. "I hope I didn't wake anyone up!"

Just around the corner, Zell was awoken by a loud bang on the wall. "Whoa, I must have fallen asleep. What? It's nine ten! I probably slept through everything." Suddenly he heard footsteps in the hall near Rinoa's room. He slowly peered around the corner and saw Rinoa once again standing in front of Squall's doorway. "I'm really lucky. I actually didn't miss anything!" Zell continued to watch and listen as hard as he could for any signs of something suspicious. The first suspicious sign was her wanting to talk to Squall.

Rinoa knocked on Squall's door. She figured he would still be up. He usually didn't go to bed until later. The door opened. Squall stood there in his black pants. His hair was wet from a shower. He didn't have his shirt on at the moment. Rinoa really took notice of his abs and arms. She snapped out of it and said, "Hey!"

"Hey…wanna come in?" Squall asked her in a monotone voice.

"I'd love to, thanks!" Rinoa bounded inside happily. Zell, behind the corner couldn't believe it. Squall had just invited her in his room!

"He's never even let me see his room before! That is cold man, real cold!"

Rinoa sat down on Squall's bed. She watched as he took a towel to dry his hair. "He is so cute…" She thought quietly to herself. He grabbed his white shirt from his closet and slipped it on. "Hey, Squall? Zell talked to me today."

"Really? What did he say?"

"He acted really weird. He said he had seen me at the dance and that I was sitting at a table as if I was waiting for someone. He must've seen me when you went to go get some punch. That's what I think at least."

"Hmm…knowing Zell he'll probably try and spy on you."

"That's ridiculous. Why would he do something like that?" Squall raised his eyebrow.

"You don't know Zell like I do." Rinoa had to admit it. When he made that face it made him look really attractive. "By the way…I uh…I uh…like your outfit."

"Thanks!" Rinoa said. She felt her cheeks go red.

"Well, I guess I better get going. Plus I can see if a certain someone is spying on me."

"Okay. Goodnight Rinoa." Rinoa loved it when he said her name at the end. She smiled and walked closer to him.

"Goodnight Squall." She then leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. "See you tomorrow." Squall stood there not sure what to do. Rinoa left his room, shutting the door quietly. She peeked around the hall to see if she saw Zell anywhere. Satisfied she went back to her room.

After she had gotten ready for the new day ahead of her, she ran out her door and around the first corner. She continued to run, but stopped. She turned around. "I knew I saw someone!" There was Zell, fast asleep next to a plant, his face in the soil. "Zell! How dare you try and spy on me!" With this loud outburst, Zell jumped up faster than lightning.

"Huh? Oh, hi Rinoa. What's up?" He said with a little laugh.

"Don't 'what's up Rinoa' me!" She yelled back at him. I can't believe you would do this!"

"Well I did so, so, yeah! Besides, I found what I was looking for."

"What? What do you mean?"

"I know you like Squall. I had already suspected you at first, and now I know that you did go to the dance with him!"

"Zell! Please don't tell Squall!"

"Don't worry, I won't tell him…just some others…"

"Others?"

"You know…Quistis, Selphie, and Irvine. They deserve to know."

With that said and done he ran off before Rinoa could say another word. She couldn't tell Squall this! What if stopped liking her, if he did like her. "Now I'm confused again! I hate this!"

At lunch that afternoon, Rinoa walked towards her usual table where her group of friends sat. "Had Zell told them?" She wondered. "If so, what would they say?" She sat down and began to eat her salad. Everyone's eyes were on her. "What?" She asked them.

Quistis spoke up first. "Zell told us about you…you and um…Squall…" Selphie smiled at her.

"I think it's really sweet!" She said. Irvine had started tickling her, making her beg for mercy.

"Is it wrong…for me to like him?" Rinoa asked quietly.

"Of course not. I just wish you had said something to us first." Quistis said, concern in her voice.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I promise I will next time." The rest of lunch was pretty quiet. No one had much to say except for Selphie's loud giggle fits. Rinoa finished eating and stood up to leave.

"Where are you going?" Quistis asked.

"I'm gonna go into town and shop for a little bit." Quistis nodded her head in an okay, and Rinoa left.

As she walked out of the Garden she started getting a little frustrated. It felt like everyone was starting to pry into her personal life! It was her's and Squall's business! They needed to stay out of it and leave them alone!


	7. Downtown Run In

Chapter 7

Downtown Run In

Rinoa continued to walk down the path. She stared straight at the ground, kicking a rock. She wasn't watching where she was going and ran into the back of somebody. "Oh, sorry." She said. She started to walk off when the person said her name. "Huh?" She turned around. A guy with short brown hair and blue eyes was standing in front of the Balamb Hotel. "Jason?"

"I haven't seen you in forever Rinoa! How have you been?"

"I'm fine. Why are you here, in Balamb?" Jason had been her friend in Timber. He had always wanted more though. Rinoa smiled.

"I'm here because Timber sent me to research about the forests around here. You know, check out how strong the monsters are…" He always liked to brag about his strength. He was good looking but definitely not boyfriend material. He flirted with tons of girls back at her old school.

"Really? That's cool." Rinoa glanced around for a quick escape. Thankfully she caught sight of Squall in a weapons shop, upgrading his gunblade. "Well, I'm going to go shopping."

"Why don't I come with you?" He said moving towards her.

"Oh, you don't have to." She said with a fake laugh.

"No, I want to." Rinoa sighed.

"Great! Just what I need. My secret admirer following me around!" She thought quietly to herself. "Squall's in there so maybe if I hang out with him he'll leave me alone!" She ran into the weapons shop and grabbed Squall's arm, surprising him. He had no idea she was in town.

"Hey Squall! How's it going?" He could since a strange tone in her voice. Then he saw the other guy come in.

"Rinoa…there you are. Who's he?" The guy gave Squall a sinister look of jealousy.

"Oh, him. He's just a close friend." Rinoa did a fake laugh and smile again. "Squall meet Jason. Jason, Squall."

"Nice to meet you." They reached out for a handshake. They stared at one another gripping the other guys hand tighter. Rinoa watched in silence.

"Okay! Now that you've met each other, let's go shopping!" She said cheerfully breaking the tenseness.

Jason looked at Rinoa. "That's not fair. I was always her friend and she never clinged to me like that. Besides, what's that supposed to mean…a close friend?"

They walked out of the store and down past the next few shops. Jason walked a little behind watching Rinoa. The whole time she was hanging on Squall's arm. He was getting jealous, fast.

They kept walking until Rinoa stopped and said, "Can we please go in here? I want to buy some new clothes." Squall nodded his head and they walked inside. Rinoa grabbed tons of clothes and ran to the dressing room. "Okay, I'm gonna try on clothes and you have to tell me whether you like it or not. Got it?"

"Yeah." Jason and Squall said together.

"I have this one in the bag. I know Rinoa's taste in clothes. I used to go with her shopping all the time. She always wanted my opinion." Jason thought to himself.

Squall and Jason sat down in chairs, waiting for Rinoa. The curtain slid back. Rinoa was wearing a summer dress in blue with flip flops. "That looks great on you Rinoa!" Jason said. Rinoa smiled.

"What do you think Squall?" Squall looked up at her and shook his head. "Yeah, I thought so. It isn't really my style." Jason couldn't believe it. It looked awesome on her…this was so not Rinoa.

The next minute or so, she came back out wearing dark blue jeans with a green halter top. Squall nodded his head. Jason said the other one looked better. Rinoa ran back behind the curtain and tried a few more outfits. The whole time Jason was getting more frustrated. "Everytime he likes something she gets it, but if he doesn't she won't. She's not even really paying any attention to my opinions!" He thought.

Rinoa walked out of the dressing room with her new clothes in a stack, folded neatly. "This will do." She said smiling.

"Allow me to pay for it." Jason said.

"Oh, that's not necessary. You don't have to."

"I want to." With that, he took Rinoa's clothes from her and put them on the counter. A minute later he came back with her clothes in a bag. "Here you go."

"Thanks Jason!" Rinoa smiled and began to walk out the door. Squall and Jason looked at one another and then continued to follow her. Halfway down the road Rinoa turned to them and asked, "Hey, do you guys want to have lunch?"

"I'd love to." Jason replied. Squall didn't answer. Rinoa took that as a yes.

"Alright! Let's go!" They walked down to a small restaurant called "Fisherman's Catch" and sat down in the back at a table for four. A waitress then came and took their order. "I think I'll have the broiled flounder with a baked potato and broccoli and a water to drink." Rinoa said from her menu.

"I'll have the same." Jason said. Squall gazed at the menu.

"I'll take the shark…with steamed vegetables and broccoli with water as well."

"Okay. Your food will be out in about twenty minutes." The waitress walked off to get their drinks and came back with three glasses of ice cold water. "Enjoy!"

Jason looked at Rinoa, then at Squall. He wished the other guy wasn't here. Then he could be having a romantic lunch with her. "So…tell me. How did you two meet?"

Rinoa looked at Squall, but he remained silent. "Well, this guy Seifer was showing me around when this T-Rex attacked us. It clawed my leg so I couldn't get up. I called for help…Well, I actually screamed more than yelling for help." Rinoa laughed a little. "I closed my eyes and opened them and to my surprise, there he was, standing in front of me."

"Really? How nice…" Jason was looking a little annoyed.

"Yeah…then he carried me to the infirmary and back to my room."

"………." Jason gripped his napkin tighter in his hand. "What? He took her to her room? He carried her?" He was getting even more jealous by the minute. A few seconds later, their food was placed down in front of them. Rinoa looked over at Squall's plate.

"Aren't you just a healthy eater…I try!" Rinoa laughed as she said this. Squall looked up from his plate.

"Whatever…" He said.

"Can I try some of your shark? I've never had any before."

"Fine…" Squall cut off a piece and put it on her plate. "She eats a lot." Squall thought and sighed.

"Wow, this is really good. I should get this next time." Jason didn't like how this was going at all. Finally, they finished eating and left the restaurant. Rinoa walked ahead of the two guys. Jason ran forwards to talk to Rinoa, leaving Squall behind.

"So Rinoa…I've missed you at school."

"Yeah…is everything going okay over there?"

"It's great…but it still isn't the same without you there."

"You're just saying that…" Rinoa's face flushed a little.

"No. I mean it…" Jason smiled. Squall who was walking behind the two, squeezed his fist tighter.

"Is he trying to make a move on her?" He thought to himself. His flirting continued until they reached the entrance to Balamb Garden.

"Well, time to go get ready for bed." Rinoa said cheerfully.

"Do you have to? You're sure you can't stay here just a little bit longer?"

"I'm really tired, but I'll see you around okay?"

"Fine. Goodnight then Sweetheart." Jason then ran back off toward the town. Rinoa rolled her eyes.

"It's about time he left…I can't believe he's here!" She leaned against the building.

"Sweetheart?" Squall asked, with no emotion in his voice. Rinoa looked up.

"He's always called me that. Jason always wanted me to be his girlfriend, but I always rejected him. I guess he still won't give up." There was silence between the two. "Well, I'm heading on up to my room. Goodnight." She got up and walked into the Garden. Squall looked back towards the town of Balamb and then followed.


	8. The Dream

Chapter 8

The Dream

Rinoa rummaged through her closet. "What outfit should I wear. Wait! It doesn't matter because Squall told me the ones he liked so I'll just wear one of them. She ran to her bathroom and got dressed quickly.

As she walked down the hallway, she thought back to last night. Jason, her friend from her last school had been in town. It had been so obvious that he still liked her after all of this time. She had tried to escape by finding Squall, but he had stayed with them.

It was eight thirty. Rinoa sat down in her history class. Squall was there, too. This was her only class with him. "Today we will begin a new project. You will have partners for this assignment. You will be making a chart with pictures and diagrams of the history of a town of your choice. Yes, the pictures must be made or hand drawn. I will choose your partners." Her teacher went on and on about the new project.

"Great…" Rinoa thought. "I hate it when they choose our partners. It's always someone you don't want to be paired up with." She sighed.

"Let me see. Michelle will be with Tina…Mark with Donna…James with Greg…" She went on and on until at last she reached Rinoa's name. "Rinoa will be with…no, he just moved so it will be…Squall Leonhart." Rinoa couldn't believe it. She looked over at Squall and waved. He managed a small grin.

"Good enough." Rinoa thought.

That afternoon, Rinoa found Squall in the lunch room. She walked over to his table and sat down. "Hey Squall. I was thinking about our project and I thought we could do it on Galbadia. They have such a long history it would make it easy. What do you think?"

"That's fine…" Rinoa smiled and then walked back to her classroom to get a poster board. She ran back down the hallway to Squall's dorm and knocked on his door.

"Oh Squall! Lunch ended ten minutes ago so I know you're in there!" His door opened. He stared at her and then the poster. "I know…I don't really want to do this either, but it's half of our grade. I don't know about you, but I want that half to be passing!" She ran over to his desk and laid the poster across it.

"Hey, do you have any markers?" Squall looked at her in amusement. "Right…sorry. Guys don't usually have markers now do they. Well then, can you go into my room and look in the top drawer of my desk. I have like, a whole pack."

"Okay." Squall turned around but then stopped. "I'll uh, need you room key."

"Oh yeah, right. Sorry." She tossed him the key and he went across the hall. He unlocked her door and walked over to her desk. He opened the top drawer and saw the markers. He grabbed them and walked back across the hall. "Here." He said when he had reentered his room.

"Thanks." Rinoa took the markers from his hand and began coloring.

"Here's your key." Squall held it up for her to take.

"Uh…why don't you just keep it for now. You know…that way when you're not in classes you can get any supplies you need out of my desk. You know…for the project." Rinoa said this all fast. She didn't want him getting the wrong idea.

"Right…" Squall stood there for a moment in silence and then pulled a different key out of his jacket pocket. "I guess you should take my spare…for the project supplies, too." He stood pretty stiffly.

"Poor Squall." Rinoa thought. "I didn't mean to make him feel uncomfortable." Rinoa took the key from his hand. "Thanks." For the next hour Squall drew the pictures while Rinoa colored them in. By around nine at night, they decided to put it on hold. Half of it was already through. "That looks good enough for now. It looks pretty good if I do say so myself."

"Yeah…" They sat in silence for a few minutes and looked at their work.

"Well, I'm gonna head to bed now. I'm beat. Goodnight." Rinoa walked back into her room and changed into her tank top and blue shorts pajamas. "Ah…time for relaxation. She closed her eyes and fell asleep fifteen minutes later.

It was two fifty in the morning. Rinoa was tossing and turning in her sleep. "No!" She cried out. She shook her head and flipped from side to side. She sat up quickly, breathing hard. "No!" She yelled again. She looked around. "It can't be real!" She jumped out of her bed and grabbed the key off her desk. Then she opened her door and ran across the hall to the door opposite. She stuck the key in the lock and turned the handle. The door opened.

The room was dark except for the moonlight shining in through the curtain. Rinoa closed the door and tried to see through the darkness. At last she found who she was looking for. Squall who had been sleeping opened his eyes and sat up in his bed. He had on his usual black pants, but had taken his shirt off to sleep. "Rinoa?" He asked, trying to make out the figure by his door.

"Squall!" Rinoa ran over to the side of his bed and sat down. She wrapped her arms around his neck. Squall was speechless. He didn't know what to do. "Don't go away!" She said to him, burying her face in his shoulder.

Squall had finally found his voice. "What are you talking about? I'm right here!" He said.

"You…you…" Rinoa lifted her face away from him. Squall could see tears running down her face. "A woman…she…she…" She burst into tears again. "She came and took you away. She said that I would never see you again…that you were…were…DEAD!" More tears sprang from her eyes.

Squall lifted her chin, to look into her eyes. "I haven't gone anywhere. I'm right here…with you." Rinoa looked away and then leaned her face on his chest. Squall, without knowing what he was doing, wrapped his arms around her. "It's okay…I'm here." He whispered in her ear.

Rinoa looked up into his face. "Promise me…" She said. "Promise me that you won't ever disappear." Squall stared into her face. He had never seen her look so serious or upset.

"I promise." Rinoa smiled a little when she heard this. She wiped some tears from her face, only to be replaced by more.

"I was so scared…" Rinoa said in a shaky voice. "I thought…I thought I had lost you. It felt so real."

"It wasn't…It was just a nightmare." He picked her up and placed her gently on his bed. "You'll be okay. Here." He grabbed a glass of water off his nightstand and brought it up to her lips. She drank a little bit.

"Thank you Squall…" Squall placed the glass back on the stand next to his bed. He smiled. He lifted his bed sheets and placed them on her. Within ten minutes, Rinoa had fallen asleep. Squall stood there and watched her for a few minutes. She looked so peaceful and calm. He never thought he would see her so upset. He walked over to his desk chair and sat down. A few minutes later, he was sound asleep.

Rinoa opened her eyes. She looked around the room she was in. "Where am I?" She thought to herself. Then she remembered last night's events. Looking over at Squall's desk she saw him fast asleep in his chair. "I don't believe it! He stayed here all night by my side." Squall began to move a bit. He opened his eyes slowly and sat up.

"Rinoa? Are you okay?" He sounded tired.

"Yeah…I'm fine now." She smiled at him. "Thank you."

"It was nothing…" Squall seemed a little nervous.

"No, it was something. It takes someone a lot of courage to take care of someone they don't know that well. You did. I thank you for that. I always knew you were different then how everyone said you were."

Squall blushed. "Your, ah…your welcome." He was silent. "Hey, you probably want to get ready for the day. Do you need anything else?"

Rinoa got off his bed and walked towards him. "No, I'll be fine on my own." She looked him in the eyes and then reached out her arms wrapped them around his back in a hug. Squall wrapped his around hers. They stood there for a moment and then released. Then Rinoa left without another word. Squall watched her walk off, deep in thought.


	9. Rinoa's Visitor

Chapter 9

Rinoa's Visitor

The rest of the day was strange. Rinoa felt as if she had no energy to do anything. Her dream she had had that night still got to her. It scared her to think about it. When she saw Squall, there was an awkward silence between them. Neither one knew what to say to the other.

Rinoa was walking past the front desk, when something caught her eye. There was a tall man with black hair, and a long trench coat. He stood tall like a military man. "That guy looks familiar." She stood there a bit longer. The next minute she groaned. "Oh my gosh! I can't believe it!" She walked to the front desk and waited for the man to turn around, facing her way.

"Rinoa!"

"Dad! What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to come and see how you are doing. Have you made any friends?"

"Yeah, but…"

"Great! Let me meet them!" Her dad began to walk off. "So, where to first?"

Rinoa sighed. "Well, it's lunch time so they'll all be in the cafeteria…"

"Great! I'm starving!" Once again her dad walked off, this time towards the lunch room. Rinoa walked farther behind, shuffling her feet. "Come on honey!" Rinoa hoped nobody had heard that.

When they reached the cafeteria, Rinoa spotted her friends. She ran over to them as fast as she could to warn them about her father. Too late!

"Are these your new friends Cupcake?" He asked with a smile on his face. Rinoa dropped her head in embarrassment.

"Yeah…"

Zell looked up from his plate. "Hey there…I'm Zell. Is this your dad Cupcake?" He started laughing. Rinoa gave him a death glare. He immediately stopped.

"Everyone…meet my dad." Rinoa's Dad waved at them all.

"I'm pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Were you in the army?" Zell asked, noticing the badges on his large overcoat.

"Why yes!" He sat down next to Zell and began telling him stories.

"Great…here he goes. He loves to tell people his heroic battles." Rinoa, hoping her dad wouldn't notice, snuck out of the cafeteria.

She was walking down the second floor hallway when she saw the glimpse of a black jacket and silver sword, go around the corner. She ran around the corner. It was Squall. She ran up next to him.

"Hey Squall…I wanted to say…" Her words were cut short by the most embarrassing thing she could ever have imagined.

"Gummy Bear…why did you run off?" Rinoa's face turned red.

"Dad! Hey…sorry about that! He he!" Rinoa looked over at Squall. He seemed a little shocked. "I can't believe he said that out loud! Squall is standing here, too!" She thought miserably to herself.

"Who is this? Is he another friend of yours or your boyfriend?" At those last words his voice seemed to get sterner.

"Oh, him…no…of course not…don't be silly. He's just a friend." Rinoa did an innocent little laugh. Squall looked really nervous. He seemed to have twitched a little at the "boyfriend" comment.

"I have to uh…go to…you know…weapons training. See you later." He quickly walked off into the classroom nearby.

"He seems like a very nice young man to me." Her father stood there with a smile on his face.

"Dad! We're not…never mind." Rinoa blushed. "I wouldn't mind it if we were like that though." Out of the corner of her eye she thought she saw a face behind a corner of the wall. As she and her father walked back down to the first floor, she looked around. No one was anywhere to be seen.

"So, this is your room? It is a very decent size for my little Princess!" Rinoa's dad walked around her room examining each piece of furniture. He was into elegant designs. He always wanted the best for her. As he walked to her desk he stopped and picked something up. "What's this?" He asked.

"What?" Rinoa asked turning around. She opened her mouth. In his hand was Squall's room key. "Oh that? It goes to the uh…closet!"

"The closet?" He asked suspiciously.

"Yeah! Never want my clothes to be stolen! He he!" Rinoa closed her eyes. "That was a really lame excuse Rinoa! You should come up with something better than that!" She thought to herself.

"Rinoa…your closet doesn't have a lock."

"Oh, yeah…right." Rinoa panicked.

"Are you telling me the truth young lady?"

Rinoa closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay." She said. "It goes to that room across the hall." Her father walked out and to the other door. He turned the lock and walked inside. Rinoa waited with baited breath. "This looks like a boy's room!"

Rinoa gulped. "Well, you see, when I came here I got interested in other stuff…so I asked for an extra room to use…" Rinoa waited for an answer. Her father gave her a stern look, as if deciding he was going to believe her or not.

"That's my girl!" He said with a smile. As if anything couldn't have been worse, Squall walked in his room. He stood there not knowing what to do, looking confused. "What are you doing here?" Her father asked him.

"He's here to work on our project for History class…isn't that right Squall?" Squall just looked at Rinoa confused.

"That's great. You two work hard now. You help my little Princess get the good grade she so very well deserves!"

"Dad!" Rinoa said.

"Okay, okay…I get it!" He walked over to Squall and whispered, "You be sure to take care of my little girl." Then he smiled. "Goodbye Rinoa. I love you sweetie. I'll stop by again sometime." They hugged each other and then her father left.

"Squall…what did my Dad say to you?"

"Nothing…"

"Please tell me!"

"Fine…" He really didn't feel much like getting into an argument with her at the moment. "He said to take care of his little girl…"

"Yup…that's Dad!" She smiled.

Squall looked down at her. "By the way…what were you doing in my room with your Dad?" He gave her a curious expression.

Rinoa laughed nervously. "Oh that, that was nothing. My dad saw your key in my room and I had to come up with an explanation for it or he would have started yelling at me. When he took the key to unlock this room he said that it looked like a guy's bedroom. I just told him that when I came here I got interested in other things and didn't have enough room in my other room to put them in." She laughed again in her innocent way.

"What's wrong with telling him the truth?" He asked her, a small smile creeping up his lips.

"Squall! I can't believe you're asking me that! You know exactly why! My dad would have freaked if he found out I had a boy's bedroom key! He would sit me down and have 'The Talk' and go on for hours about it!" She said all of this very quickly as her cheeks began to turn red a little bit.

"Really…that's interesting…" Squall said walking over towards his desk.

"How is that interesting? It's horribly humiliating!"

"Yeah…for you." Squall replied.

"Hey! That's not very nice! Squall!" She could see his shoulders moving up and down trying to hold back his laughter at her.

"Whatever!" Then she walked off.


	10. Jealousy

Chapter 10

Jealousy

Rinoa was in Squall's room, finishing up their project. She had almost every inch of the poster colored in. "I hope Squall found all the information we needed." As if on cue, the door opened and Squall walked in. "Hey, did you find everything?"

"Yeah, I already typed up the essay."

"Wow! That's great. We're through then. Just in time, too. We have to present it next period."

"Do you want to read it or do you want to do half and half?" Squall asked her.

"Half and half sounds good to me. Come on!" They walked off down the hall to the elevator. They rode up to the second floor and walked into their classroom. All the students were sitting with their partners, discussing what they would say. Silence came over them as the teacher walked in.

"Today we will present our projects starting with….let's see….Rinoa and Squall. Please come to the front of the classroom." They stood up and walked toward the front. Everyone's eyes were on them. Rinoa held the poster up as Squall spoke. Then they switched halfway through it.

"Thank you. That was an excellent report. I can tell you two worked hard. You get an A." Rinoa smiled. Squall didn't seem to think it was a big deal. During the rest of class everyone else presented their assignments. Everyone paid attention until a young girl Rinoa's age walked in. She had long blond hair and blue eyes. Her body was thin and slender with long legs. She spoke to the teacher a moment. The teacher then cleared her throat. "Excuse me class…we have a new student. Her name is Crystal. I expect you all to help her around and be respectful. Why don't you take a seat anywhere you like?"

Rinoa watched the girl. Her hair flowed behind her making all the boys in the class's eyes go hazy with daydreams. A knot filled Rinoa's stomach. She choked. The girl had sat down right next to Squall! She watched as she flipped her hair over her shoulder, crossed her legs, and unbuttoned her jacket.

"Hello there…my name's Crystal. Who are you?" She had turned to face Squall.

"Squall…" He didn't look at her. He just stared ahead.

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Squall. Would you mind showing me around the school? I might get lost on my own."

"…………………" Squall didn't answer.

"Someone doesn't like to talk much now do they?" She asked him, a smile forming across her face. "I like a serious guy. It usually means their serious in everything they do."

"Whatever." That was his only reply. The bell for class to end rang. The girl stood up.

"I guess I'll be seeing you around cutie." She stood up slowly and leaned down to grab her jacket. "I'll be looking for you at lunch." She whispered in his ear. Crystal then picked up her books and walked out the door.

Rinoa stood there with her mouth open. She couldn't believe that girl! There she was making a move on the guy she liked! She walked over to Squall as he got up to leave. "Hey Squall. Did that new girl Crystal…did she say anything to you?"

"Yeah."

"I knew it! What did she say?" Rinoa could feel heat building up inside.

"She asked if I would show her around school. Then she said she would be looking for me at lunch." He grabbed his books and started to walk off.

"Wait!" Rinoa called after him. "She's going to look for you at lunch? I don't think so! Not on my watch!" Squall glanced at Rinoa curious at her sudden outburst.

"I never said I would actually be at lunch though…"

"Huh?" Rinoa looked at him quickly. "Oh…never mind then." She laughed a little after that. "Where are you going then?" There was silence.

"I was going to go to the cafeteria first, and then my room to eat. Then she wouldn't be able to sit with me."

"Smart thinking! Mind if I join?" She blinked her eyes up at him and smiled.

"Why not?" He answered. They walked into the cafeteria and grabbed some food. Then they walked down past the infirmary and to the dorms. Squall opened his door and let Rinoa in first. They sat down on the bed and began to eat in silence.

"Squall?" Rinoa asked to break the stillness in the air. "Have you ever had a um…girlfriend?" Squall was startled by this question.

"No…not really. Girls have come on to me, but…I never liked them."

"Hmm." Rinoa felt sort of special. It made her feel as if he liked her because she had had so many different experiences with him. They finished eating and put their plates down. "So…what do you want to do?" She asked him.

"I don't know…how about a walk?"

"Sure!" They stood up off the bed and walked out into the hallway. Rinoa walked next to him. "I wonder if he would let me hold his hand…It's worth a try." She looked around the building and slowly lifted her hand to his. Squall looked at her as she grabbed his hand, but didn't pull away. "It worked! This is awesome!" They continued to walk, side by side, holding hands when they heard laughter.

"Isn't this precious. The little girl has a crush." Rinoa turned around. It was Crystal. "Why don't you just give up already? This guy is way out of your league."

"Shut up! No he's not! Just mind your own business Crystal!"

"Yeah, right…" Crystal walked towards them and came close up to Squall's face. She pulled his chin up with her fingers. "Why don't you leave this little girl and come with a woman?" Squall just stared at her for a moment before replying. Rinoa could feel her insides boiling.

"Okay…you're right!" Squall said, a grin on his face.

"What?" Rinoa said her eyes widening. "Is Squall blowing me off?" She thought to herself in disbelief.

Squall walked towards Crystal and then turned around back to Rinoa and grabbed her hand. They started walking off. Rinoa didn't understand.

"Hey…" Crystal said. Squall turned around to face her.

"What? You told me to go with a woman, so I'm going with one…" Crystal gaped. Rinoa turned around and gave a triumphant smile as they walked off.

"Hey Squall?" Rinoa asked a few minutes later. "Did you really mean what you said?"

"About what?" He looked down at her.

"You know…about me being a woman…"

Squall blushed a little. "Well, yeah……." At this Rinoa couldn't help smiling.

"I knew he liked me! He defended me." Rinoa thought to herself. She held his hand a little tighter. Squall stopped in the hallway as he heard the bell ring.

"It's time for my next class. I should go." Rinoa made a pouting face. Squall did the little smirk she loved so much. Then, without warning, he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek.

"He just kissed me. He himself!" Rinoa was so happy. She slowly made her way through the rest of her classes.

As she was walking toward her room for the night, she saw Squall walking the same way. She walked a bit faster to catch up with him. "Hey!" She ran over and grabbed his arm. He smiled.

They continued on down till they reached their separate rooms. Squall was opening his bedroom door when he heard Rinoa gasp. He ran outside to make sure she was okay. She was standing in her doorway, her hand over her mouth. Furniture had been broken, her desk chair askew. Her clothes had been ripped and torn to shreds, her papers in her desk everywhere.

"Who would do this?" Rinoa said in a whisper.

"It looks as if someone was searching for something." Squall said, examining her room. "Is anything missing?"

"I don't know? Let me look…" Rinoa began rummaging around in what was left. Finally she stood back up. "My weapon is gone, but I can just buy another. Some notebook pages have been torn out, too. That's not the worst part…your spare key is gone."

"We'll get them back." Squall said.

"Someone could hurt you though…" Rinoa said worriedly.

"Don't worry." Squall had walked over and placed his hand on her shoulder. He looked around her room one more time. Rinoa looked around, too.

"Where am I supposed to stay? Everything is messed up! Even the bathtub and shower don't work! Not to mention that all my clothes are ruined."

"You…you can stay in my room if you need to…" Squall said in a nervous voice.

"Do you really mean that? That would be great! Thank you so much!" She turned around and hugged him. Squall just stood their nervously. At last she released him and the tension left him a little bit.

"I'll talk to the headmaster about what happened." Squall said. "We'll get to the bottom of this."


	11. A Late Night Visitor

Chapter 11

A Late Night Visitor

Rinoa was in Squall's bathroom, taking a shower. She got out and dried herself off. Then she realized she didn't have any other clothes to wear. She wrapped her towel tightly around and cracked the door open. She could see Squall sitting at his desk doing homework. "Excuse me…Squall…" Rinoa said.

Squall looked away from his paper, at the door. He quickly turned back, not expecting to see her in a towel. "Uh…yeah? What?" He asked quickly.

"I need some new clothes. Could I borrow something?" Rinoa asked him with a little laugh. She felt embarrassed opening the door and asking him this. She also felt a little self conscious.

Squall stood up and walked over to his closet. He grabbed a white shirt and some black shorts. "Here." He handed her the clothes without looking at her.

"Thanks!" Rinoa closed the bathroom door and pulled the white shirt on. Then she slipped into the shorts. She gazed at herself in the mirror. The shorts on Squall were probably a perfect fit. On her they went almost all the way down to her feet like pants. "This is attractive." Rinoa thought to herself as she laughed. She liked the shirt. It was just like the one he always wore. It even smelled like his cologne. Rinoa breathed in as she held the shirt up to her face.

A few minutes later she walked out of the bathroom, her hair still a little damp. "So…what do you think?" She waited for Squall to turn around. When he did he gave a small chuckle. "What's so funny?" She asked him with a stern look on her face.

"Nothing…" He said, looking away quickly. Rinoa rolled her eyes. "I know the shorts are pants on me! You don't have to make a joke out of it!" She said a little annoyed.

"Whatever…" Rinoa gave up. She walked over to his bed and sat down against the headboard.

"What are you doing?" She asked him, looking over towards his desk.

"Homework…"

"Hmm…cool." The room was silent. The only sound was Squall's pencil moving across his paper. Rinoa stood up off his bed and stood over his shoulder.

"Is something wrong?" Squall asked her, looking up.

"Oh, no. Of course not. I was just curious." He was silent. "Hey, I'm gonna go get a late night snack. Wanna come?"

"It's against the rules to go out past curfew…You'll get in trouble if you're caught."

Rinoa smiled. "That's why I'm going to be sneaky. I'm hungry and when I'm hungry, I'll do whatever it takes!" Squall raised his eyebrow and then went back to writing on his paper.

"Just…be careful." Rinoa looked at him a little surprised. "Knock on the door three times so I know it's you."

"I promise I will!" She ran over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. Squall sat there staring at his paper, tense, and not sure if he should hug her back or not. Then she ran out the door.

She made her way quietly through the hallways until she got closer to the cafeteria. A teacher was walking down the path that led to the cafeteria and heading straight for Rinoa! She jumped and hid behind a large column. The teacher slowly walked by. "I'm getting to old and tired to be monitoring halls at night…I'm going to go to bed." She yawned and then walked off around the corner.

Rinoa jumped out from behind the column and continued to run. At last, she reached her destination. "Food!" She thought to herself. She grabbed a glass of milk and chocolate chip cookie. She decided to eat there instead of heading back to the room. She figured Squall wouldn't want cookie crumbs on his floor.

Squall leaned against the back of his chair. "I can't concentrate on my homework…" He thought to himself. He put his hands to his head, when he heard his door click. It slid open, light appearing on the walls. There were footsteps and then the door shut. "Nobody has a key to my room…it was stolen from Rinoa! Rinoa was going to knock on the door three times so I would know it was her! That means…" He turned his head around to face the door.

Standing there was a girl with the same familiar blonde hair that flowed behind her. It was Crystal. She had a short night gown on and a robe over it. "Hello Squall…" She said as she walked towards him. Squall stood up and backed away nervously. "Is something wrong? I thought you would be happy to see me since we didn't have lunch together…"

Squall glared at her. "You broke into Rinoa's room! How dare you!" Crystal smiled.

"So what if I did…she's a pest anyways. You should move on to better things…" Squall had his back against his wall, just staring angrily at her. Crystal continued to walk closer to him. She stopped when she was a few inches in front of his face, staring deep into his eyes. He stared back.

Rinoa ran down the hallway, back to Squall's room. When she reached his door, she saw it was ajar. "That's strange." She thought to herself. She put it behind her and walked in. "Hey Squall, I'm back from the…." Her voice trailed off at the end. Her eyes opened wide. She could feel tears beginning to fall down her face. "No…how could you?" There was Squall, against the wall. Crystal was almost touching her lips to his. She turned around and smiled.

"Poor little girl, she's gonna cry!" She began laughing. Rinoa turned around and ran out the door, down the hallway.

"Rinoa!" Squall yelled. He pushed Crystal to the floor and ran towards his door. He stopped and turned back around. "Don't you ever think about coming near me again! And NEVER touch Rinoa! If you ever do, you will be sorry you ever met me!" Crystal glared up at him from the floor. Squall's spare room key had fallen out of her robe pocket and onto the floor. Squall reached down and took it before she could. "Thanks for this!" He said. Then he ran off in pursuit of Rinoa.

He ran out into the main building in front of the information desk. "Where did she go?" He wondered. All was silent as he made his was through every room. He was walking past the library when he heard sniffles. He quietly opened the door and walked inside. He peeked around a bookcase and saw Rinoa sitting on the ground her head on her knees. Rinoa lifted her head at the sound of footsteps.

"Go away you jerk!" She cried between sobs. Squall bent down. She looked up again. "I can't believe you!" She yelled.

"Rinoa! Let me explain!" He tried to reason with her. "It's not what it looked like!"

"You said you would open the door ONLY if it was me! Not anyone else!"

"I didn't let her in!" He said. Rinoa lifted her head.

"You didn't?"

"No…I was doing my homework when my door opened. She was the one who ruined your room and stole the key! She came onto me and then you opened the door right at the moment I was about to push her away and out of my room…"

"Really?" She asked, her voice straining to stop her cries.

"Would I ever lie to you?" He smiled and pulled her hair away from her face. Rinoa looked into his eyes. He was doing that smirk she loved so much. It made him look even more attractive than he normally did. She knew how honest he was. She knew she could trust him. "Come on…let's get back to the dorms." He picked her up off the ground and carried her all the way back. Rinoa just leaned against his chest, holding her arms around the back of his neck, and closed her eyes.

When they reached the room he made sure he locked his door so no one could get in again for a late night visit. Then he pulled his spare key out of his pocket and placed it in Rinoa's hand. Rinoa smiled up at him. "I think I'll stay up for a little bit longer…" She said.

"Are you sure? I'll sleep in my chair again if you want the bed…" Squall scratched his head nervously.

"No it's okay. I can sleep in a chair for one night." She walked over and sat at his desk. Squall climbed into his bed and was asleep fifteen minutes later. Rinoa looked over at his sleeping figure in the dark. "He looks so cute when he's sleeping. You wouldn't believe that his personality is cold and heartless at times when he's awake." She smiled. I guess I better get some sleep, too.

She began to lean back in his chair. "How does he sleep in this thing? It hurts my back! Now I know how he felt when I stole his bed from him that night I had that dream. Sorry Squall…" Rinoa thought to herself. "Unless…" Her thoughts trailed off. She snuck a little smirk. She walked over to the bed and lifted the covers. She slowly slid in next to Squall, careful not to wake him up. She didn't move for a few minutes afraid any action, would disturb his peaceful slumber.

"I can't believe I'm doing this!" She thought to herself. She turned over on her right side and placed her head on his chest. "He's so warm." She thought. Then she felt movement on her back. Squall's hand had wrapped around her shoulders in his sleep. She suppressed a smile. Within ten minutes she was out…


	12. The Birthday Gift

Chapter 12

The Birthday Gift

Squall opened his eyes to the sounds of birds chirping. He felt much better getting to sleep in his bed and not in the chair. As he opened his eyes more, getting used to the light, he felt pressure on him. He looked down. His eyes opened wide. Rinoa was asleep, her head on his chest. He sat motionless, not sure what to do.

A few minutes later she began to stir. Her eyes fluttered open and looked around the room till her eyes met his. "Morning!" She said cheerfully. "What? I tried to sleep in the chair, but it hurt my back…" She did her innocent smile. Squall then realized that his right arm was wrapped around her. He quickly removed it and got out of bed. "What's wrong?" Rinoa asked at the sudden movement.

"Nothing…" He replied as he walked into the bathroom. She heard the shower water turn on. She sat in the bed and thought to herself.

"I hope I didn't scare him too much. Although, I have to admit…I felt so safe next to him. It was as if the world around me just disappeared and nothing could harm me. It was just me and him." She smiled the more she thought about it. Squall came out a few minutes later, dressed, and ready to go.

"I'm going down to breakfast…" He told her and then walked out of the room. Rinoa got up and got ready herself, attempting to find better clothes. She rummaged around in his closet until she found black pants. Then she grabbed another white shirt and some shoes. She examined herself in the mirror.

"Looks good enough for me!" She said happily to herself. She ran out the door and down to the cafeteria, where the smell of bacon reached her. "That smells so good!" She exclaimed.

After she grabbed her a plate full of bacon she ran over to a table with Zell, Selphie, Irvine, and Quistis. "Hey!" She cried out happily.

"Hey girl!" Quistis said. "Today's a special day!" When she said this, Rinoa looked at her with a questionable expression.

"What's so special?" She asked.

Quistis smiled. "It's Squall's birthday!" Rinoa gasped.

"He didn't say anything to me! How old is he turning?"

"He'll be nineteen!"

"Wow!" Rinoa exclaimed.

"We're going to throw a special surprise party for him this afternoon!" Selphie said. She was head of the Garden Festival Committee so she had all the necessary decorations. "You have to come Rinoa! Please say you can!"

"Of course I will! I wouldn't miss it for the world!" Rinoa stood up.

"Where are you going?" Zell asked.

"I have to get a present ready! Plus I need to go shopping for an outfit! Hey, Selphie, Quistis, why don't you come along to help me?" The two girls jumped up.

"Okay!" They said together.

Rinoa, Quistis, and Selphie ran from store to store in Balamb. They walked into a store called "Coastal Beauty." Rinoa saw a pair of black knee high boots with a heel on them and rushed over to it. "Oh my gosh, these are perfect!" Selphie ran over next to her.

"Perfect for what?" She asked with a curious expression.

"You'll see later!" Rinoa told her. She grabbed the boots and continued to browse around the store till she found two brown belts and got them, too. As she went on she grabbed a leather mini black skirt and a lion-shaped charm. Then she bought some wrist bands in brown. "I'm all set!" Rinoa said happily as she ran up to the counter with Selphie and Quistis. They gave her curious looks.

"I'm not even going to ask…" Quistis said. Rinoa looked over at her as she paid for her items.

"Well, I wouldn't tell you even if you did!" After everything was put in bags, they ran back towards the Garden.

After everyone had finished setting up decorations in the Quad for the surprise party, they all ran back to their rooms to get ready. Rinoa went with Selphie to her room. Quistis decided to come along too.

Selphie curled her hair while Rinoa pulled her things out of her bag. "Okay, I have belts, skirt, shoes, shirt…crap!" She said. "I still need a jacket!" She ran out of the bathroom and told Selphie and Quistis, who was applying makeup to her face, that she would be right back.

She ran down the hall till she reached Squall's room. She opened the door slowly to see if he was anywhere in sight. The coast was clear. She ran inside and opened his closet. There were four jackets hanging inside, all alike. "I just need one." She grabbed it off the hanger and turned around. She jumped when she saw Squall standing right behind her.

"What are you doing with my jacket?" He asked her suspiciously.

Rinoa stumbled over her words. "I ah…he he…got cold so I decided I would borrow one…so can I….please?" She gave him her best sad face she could muster.

"Fine…" He said. Rinoa smiled and thanked him. Then she ran out the door and back to Selphie's room.

Selphie was on the last few strands of her hair and Quistis was buckling her high heeled shoes. They looked up as Rinoa ran in, but didn't ask any questions.

Rinoa ran into the bathroom and slipped her clothes on, using scissors in the process. She walked out of the bathroom. Selphie dropped her curling iron and Quistis stumbled in her shoes. "Whoa! Rinoa!" Selphie didn't know what to say. "That's awesome!"

"Good! That's what I was going for!" Then she walked a little closer to them and whispered her birthday surprise.

"Got it!" They said, nodding their heads up and down.

About an hour later, when it was six o'clock at night, Irvine walked with Squall down a hallway. "Come on Squall! I want to show you something. It's in the Quad!" They walked down the path until they reached another room. "Here we are!" Irvine said.

"What did you want to show me?" Squall asked him. Just then Zell, Selphie, and Quistis popped out from behind a sofa that was in the center.

"SURPRISE!" Everyone yelled. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" They all jumped up in the air and clapped.

Squall stood there, not sure what to say. He smiled a little. "How did you guys know?"

"Why would we not know?" Zell said. "You're one of our best buddy's dude! Of course we knew!"

"Let's do PRESENTS!" Selphie yelled, full of excitement.

"Okay Selphie! Chill out!" Zell yelled over her screams.

"Here Squall, this is from me." Quistis handed him a box. He unwrapped it and opened the lid. Inside was a gunblade cleaning set.

"Thanks…I could really use this." He said. Irvine handed him the next gift. It was in an envelope. Inside was money. "Thanks…I know I can find someway to use this." Irvine smiled.

"ME NEXT!" Selphie said, jumping up and down. She ran over and grabbed a huge box off the sofa. "Here!" She said. Squall took the box and looked at it.

"What's this? Five gunblades?" He asked sarcastically. Selphie laughed.

"Just open it!" Squall tore the paper off. Inside the box was a large shirt with a logo across it saying "Garden Festival Committee." He looked in the box some more and found a gift card for one hundred dollars off weapon upgrading.

"Thanks for the gift card…" Squall said. He had no idea what to say about the shirt.

"We'll wear the shirts on meeting days!" Selphie said happily. Squall looked at her, his eyebrow raised. "I'm just kidding. I know you would never wear it!" Selphie started going into fits of laughter.

"Here man!" Zell said, handing him a small box. Inside was another gift card for fifty dollars off of any weapon accessories.

"Thanks." Squall said.

Quistis and Selphie stood up and walked towards a door on the left. "Now, for the main event of the evening!" Quistis said, her hand on the door handle. Selphie was smiling so big and jumping up and down. Zell and Irvine looked at them with curious stares, Squall doing the same. The guys didn't know about the special surprise either. They were as clueless as Squall was.

Selphie and Quistis both held onto a handle of the door. Selphie on the left, Quistis on the right. There was a moment of silence. Then they opened the door. Squall's mouth dropped, along with Zell and Irvine's. There Rinoa stood. She had on the black leather mini skirt with two brown belts across it intersecting one another just like Squall's. Then she had on her black knee high boots. Around her neck she wore her chain necklace with the lion charm at the end of it. She had a white shirt on and Squall's leather jacket except that she had cut off the sleeves up to her shoulders so it had frayed edges. Brown leather straps were wrapped around up to the top of her arms and black gloves. She even had a gunblade tucked into the side of her belt on her left hip.

Rinoa walked over towards the group. Selphie and Quistis ran up behind her, suppressing their laughter at the guy's faces. She came up to Squall. "Looks like I found the Birthday Boy!" She said, a smile curving her lips. Squall didn't know what to say. He sat there, speechless. Rinoa walked over behind his chair. She put her hand on his shoulder and walked around him in a circle. Then she stopped and turned towards Selphie and Quistis. "Hey Girls, do you think he should get his birthday present now or after cake?"

"Oh, I don't know…" They said together. "Maybe…only if he's been a good boy…" Rinoa looked from them to Squall.

"Have you been a good boy?" Rinoa asked him, her eyebrow raised. Squall just sat there with his mouth open. Zell then ran forward to Squall and grabbed the bottom of his chin to make him appear to be speaking.

"Yes I have…" Zell said, moving Squall's mouth. Then he ran back to where Irvine was standing. "Looks like he has been!" He said smiling. He wanted to see what his present was, too!

Rinoa looked from Zell to Squall. "Well, then…it looks as if you'll get you're present then." Everyone's eyes were on her. She walked around him in a circle one more time and then sat down in Squall's lap sideways. Squall's eyes widened. Rinoa looked at him and gave him a mysterious smile. Then, with no warning at all, she put her hands around his neck and kissed him on the lips. Squall eyes got even bigger. After about six seconds, she separated from him.

Everyone was silent. Selphie and Quistis were smiling and giggling. Zell and Irvine had their mouths open. They were shocked. Rinoa had told Selphie and Quistis exactly what she was going to do. They had no surprises.

Rinoa got up off of Squall's lap and walked toward the girls. "Time for cake!" She said. They got up and walked towards the large cake at a table nearby. The guys stayed there staring for a few seconds, and then got up.

Squall was the last one to get any cake. He still hadn't said anything. While they ate he kept watching her out of the corner of his eye. Rinoa just talked to Selphie and Quistis till about seven thirty. Then she stood up to leave. "Well, I should go." She looked over at Squall. "Happy Birthday, Birthday Boy!" Then she turned and walked out, her heels clicking over the tiled floor, the gunblade clanking on her hip. Selphie and Quistis were quick to follow.

Zell and Irvine ran over to Squall. "You're the man Squall! I mean, Wow! I was not expecting that! She looked hot in that outfit. In fact, it looked just like yours, except you know, a girl version…a really nice looking one, though." Irvine told him, throwing his arm around Squall and starting to daydream.

"That's because it was! She made that to look just like his! Duh!" Zell said rolling his eyes. Squall just stared into space…still in shock.


	13. Confused Emotions

Chapter 13

Confused Emotions

Rinoa went back to Squall's room after the birthday party. She walked in and left a note saying she was sleeping in Selphie's dorm with her and Quistis. She placed the note on his desk and put "Love Always" and then her name at the bottom.

As she left his room she saw people staring at her. She was still wearing her leather outfit. She kept going and just ignored the strange looks she got.

Eventually, she made her way to Selphie's room. Quistis and her were already in their pajamas on the bed talking. When Rinoa walked in they both smiled up at her. She closed the door and took the gunblade off and leaned it against the wall.

"So…?" She said. "How did I do?"

"It was awesome!" Selphie said. "Did you see the other guy's faces? They couldn't believe it!"

"Especially Squall's! He didn't say anything! I think he was too shocked!" Rinoa took her boots off and sat on the bed.

"How was it?" Selphie asked, her face beaming.

"How was what?" Rinoa asked.

"You know…the kiss!" She and Quistis couldn't contain themselves anymore. They fell over giggling at their own curiosity. Rinoa smiled.

"The kiss? Well, I wouldn't call it the best because, as you can tell, he was so not expecting it…" Selphie and Quistis sat back up to listen.

"But…"

"But what?" They yelled together.

"For someone not expecting it…it was really good!" They started laughing. Rinoa finally stopped and looked over at them. "Do you think he liked my outfit?"

Selphie looked at her with an eyebrow raised. "Are you kidding me? He loved it, I'm sure of it! You should have seen how big his eyes got when he saw you with that mini skirt, tall black boots, HIS jacket AND white shirt, and even a GUNBLADE! Believe me! He probably though you were the girl of his dreams!" Rinoa laughed.

"You might want to watch out Selphie! I saw Irvine looking, too!" Quistis said, poking her in the side. Selphie immediately glared at her.

"He would never betray me! I just know it!" Quistis laughed.

"I'm only joking!"

"Don't worry Selphie…I won't steal Irvine from you." Rinoa said, putting a comforting hand on Selphie's shoulder.

"Yeah! You've got your eyes peeled on another special someone!" Selphie said giggling once again. Rinoa blushed.

"Yeah, you're right…I guess I do."

Squall walked back to his dorm room after the party. It was about seven forty now. He had stayed back to hang with the guys for a little bit. They had talked about Rinoa constantly, bickering about what their favorite part of her outfit was. Irvine said he liked her skirt and boots because they reminded him of Selphie. Zell said he liked her gloves because they made him think of the ones he used for martial arts. Squall had been asked what his favorite part was, but he was still unable to talk.

When he reached his room, he fell down onto his bed. Thoughts were running through every corner of his mind. He had flashbacks to the moment when Quistis and Selphie pulled the doors apart, revealing Rinoa behind it. He saw her outfit once again. Leather skirt instead of pants, black boots, his shirt and jacket, but cut up to the shoulder having frayed edges. Then he saw the lion on her necklace. It matched the one on his ring. Then there was the gunblade. Zell was right. It had been his whole outfit, except for the fact that it had been modified into her own style.

"That's why she wanted my jacket…" He thought. She already had his white shirt. He had to admit it; she did look really good in those clothes. His mind wondered some more and he thought back to when she was asking him if he had been a good little boy. His voice had choked, leaving him unable to answer. Her hand had touched his shoulder and she had circled him. He even remembered how she walked, the gunblade clanking on her hip. Then when she had suddenly sat in his lap…

He had no objections to this and had to admit it…he liked it, but the shock had been so great. Then she had kissed him in front of everyone! It felt like they stayed like that for eternity, but then she stopped and stood up. Then he had aftershock and still couldn't speak.

"What's wrong with me?" He asked. He turned to face his desk and saw a note lying upon it. He picked it up and read it.

"Dear Squall,

I'm staying with Selphie and Quistis in Selphie's dorm room. We're going to have a girl's night! I just thought you should know so you wouldn't worry too much. Happy Birthday! I'll see you later!

Love Always,

Rinoa H."

Squall stared at the bottom of the letter. "Love Always" it said. "Maybe that's what I'm feeling." He said to himself. "I've always liked her, but I've never thought about us dating and…kissing…" He turned over on his side. "What do I say to her when I see her tomorrow...I don't know…"

Rinoa sat up on the bed still awake. Selphie and Quistis were already asleep. "I wonder what Squall's doing right now…I hope I didn't make him to nervous or move to fast…" She wondered. "What do I say when I see him again tomorrow? I guess I should just act normal, like nothing ever happened…then I can see how he is and continue from there. I have to admit though…I had a lot of fun dressing like that. It made me feel special…sort of like…I was his girl…" Rinoa closed her eyes and fell asleep a few minutes later.


	14. The Goddess of Evil

Chapter 14

The Goddess of Evil

"Do you think we should wake her up?" Selphie whispered to Quistis.

"Yeah, she wouldn't want to sleep the day away." Quistis whispered back. The two girls were standing over Rinoa's sleeping figure, watching her. "What should we do?"

"I've got an idea…" Selphie trailed off with small giggles. She ran off into the bathroom and came out with her hairbrush. "We can pull some of the hairs out of this and make her think it's a spider!"

"You've got to be kidding me, right?"

"Of course not!" Selphie gave her a stern look.

"All right, fine." Quistis finally agreed.

Selphie pulled out a couple of hairs and began to move them around lightly across Rinoa's face. Rinoa opened her eyes and jumped back, hitting her head on the headboard. "Ahhhh-Ow!" She screamed. Selphie and Quistis were on the floor in laughter, holding their stomachs. "Hey! That was awful! I can't believe you two! I thought that was a spider on my face!"

"I'm sorry!" Selphie and Quistis said between laughs. Rinoa glared down at them and then jumped down and wrapped her arms around their shoulders in a hug.

"It's okay! I forgive you! Now…" Rinoa turned toward the bed and grabbed a pillow off and threw it in Selphie's face! "Time for my revenge!" The other two grabbed pillows and the war began. It continued for about another thirty minutes until feathers were strewn across the room. They all laughed and cleaned up the mess.

Finally, after all the feathers were gone Rinoa grabbed her clothes from the party and told the girls bye. Then she ran off down the hallway toward Squall's room. She stopped in front of his door. "I'm nervous. Squall's in there. What do I say to him…He's going to look at me, but how…?" Butterflies were flying everywhere through her body. She gulped and turned the door knob.

She walked in and closed the door. Squall sat hunched over his desk, writing on paper. She watched him, not sure what to do or say. He turned his head around and looked at her. They sat there, looking at each other in awkward silence until Squall spoke up. "Hey…"

"Hey…" Rinoa said, blushing slightly. She walked over to the closet and opened the door to put her costume in. Squall looked down at the clothes in her hand and saw his jacket, shirt, and her leather mini skirt. Rinoa took her chain necklace from around her neck and took the lion charm off.

Squall stood up, and gazed at her with a soft expression in his eyes. "Rinoa…" He said, with a small sigh. Rinoa looked up from her necklace. "I…I…" Rinoa stared into his beautiful ocean blue eyes. "I want you to…to…" He seemed just as nervous as her. "I would like for you to have this." Rinoa looked down at his hand. His ring with the lion on it was lying in his palm. "Here…" He took her necklace from her hands and placed his ring on the chain.

Rinoa was speechless. Squall looked up from the necklace into her dark brown eyes. She finally was able to move her lips to form words. "Are you sure you want me to have this? It's so beautiful…"

"Yeah…I'm sure. You deserve it." He said. Rinoa smiled.

"Thank you." She turned around to face the door. Then she lifted her hair away from her neck. "Can you put it on for me?" Squall smiled a little. He threw the necklace around her head and brought the ends of the chain to the back of her neck. He clipped them together and Rinoa let her hair fall back down below her shoulders.

She turned back around to face him and looked down at her necklace. They looked at each other with curious stares in silence. Squall took a few more steps toward her. Their faces were drawing closer and closer. He leaned in towards her. His breath could now be felt on her cheek.

Within seconds, their lips touched. Rinoa closed her eyes. A surge of energy ran through her. She never thought this would happen. She could feel herself melting into his arms. A few seconds later they pulled apart. Rinoa opened her eyes in disbelief. He had done it. He had kissed her of his own free will. They smiled at each other. Then Rinoa wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him. They embraced each other for a little bit.

After they pulled apart, they stared into each others eyes once more. This time Squall was making the moves. He leaned down and pressed his lips against hers again. His lips felt warm against hers. In a matter of seconds he began to deepen the kiss more. Rinoa was in disbelief, but went with it anyways. This was what she had wanted after all. Then to her surprise, he pushed her against the wall, her hands above her head. Her arms came down and wrapped tightly about his neck and pulled him in closer to her. This continued till finally Rinoa pulled away from him after one last kiss.

She walked back towards the door. "I'm hungry…I'm gonna get some breakfast…Do you wanna come?" Squall smiled and nodded his head. As they walked down the hallway, he took her hand in his.

When they reached the cafeteria and got their food, they walked over toward their friends. The group stared at them. They had still been holding hands. Squall went to sit down next to Zell, Rinoa next to him who sat beside Selphie.

Zell poked Squall in the ribs. "You're the man Squall! Nice catch!" He said, a large grin on his face. Selphie was asking Rinoa a ton of questions about them. Quistis had just winked at her.

"So, are you two like an item now?" She asked. Rinoa blushed. She hadn't really thought about having a name for the two of them.

"Well…I…ah…" She laughed, her face turning redder.

"I think we are…what about you Rinoa?" Squall said looking at her. Rinoa turned to face him with shock in her eyes.

"Really? Do you mean it?" She asked.

"Remember before…Would I lie to you?"

"Of course you wouldn't…I shouldn't ask you that after that night." Everyone looked at Rinoa at this last statement.

"Whoa! What night?" Zell asked standing up, his eyes huge. "Did something happen that you haven't told us Rinoa? Huh?"

"Don't worry…It's not like that!" Rinoa said, her cheeks bright red now. "You see, there was this girl named Crystal and she came into Squall's room one night and when I came back to his room that girl was there! I got jealous thinking that he liked her because their faces were so close, but then he came after me and told me the truth. Then I asked if he promised that he wasn't lying and he said, 'Would I lie to you?'"

Zell sat back down more relaxed now. Everyone watched Rinoa. Irvine then spoke up for the first time. "Hey, isn't that your ring, Squall?" Squall nodded his head.

"Yeah, I wanted her to have it…"

"Why? I thought you made it. Isn't it like one of your most prized possessions?"

"Yeah, that's why I gave it to her." Rinoa felt as if her heart was going to burst.

"Oh Squall!" She said. She turned in her chair and hugged him. Selphie ran over next to Irvine and hugged him. She couldn't resist the moment.

"Wait a second!" Zell said loudly. "What do you mean you went to Squall's room? Wasn't that at like one in the morning?"

"Yeah…he he! Well you see, Crystal broke into my room and everything got ruined so…you know…Squall said that I could stay in his room till mine was fixed…" Rinoa's face was brilliantly red now.

"What! You're staying in his room? So does that mean you like…"

"Oh no! Don't worry! Squall sleeps in his chair; I sleep in the bed…" She laughed inside to herself at her own lie. "I can't tell him I slept next to him! He would be on my case!" She thought.

"Right…" Zell trailed off. Rinoa wasn't sure if he believed her. She couldn't blame him though. She had slept next to him that one night. Rinoa smiled to herself at the memory of it.

Crystal sat in the corner of the cafeteria, her hand gripped tightly around her cup. "That girl! She makes me so made! Grrrrr!" She stood up from the table and walked behind a wall. "Good, no one in sight." With that, she disappeared into the air.

At last they left the cafeteria, holding hands. They were halfway down the hallway when the walls and doors began to swirl and twist. "What's happening?" Rinoa cried out. The walls around them vanished, to be replaced by infinite darkness. "Where are we?"

"I don't know!" Squall said, pulling Rinoa closer.

"You shouldn't cling so hard to people…" A voice echoed throughout the darkness. "You never know when you might loose them!" Swirls of dark energy blew towards them. They held on to each other tighter. Laughter rang out in the darkness.

A light appeared a few yards before Rinoa and Squall. In the light, a throne emerged, the laughter continuing. "Show yourself!" Squall screamed.

"Very well!" A figure dropped out of the darkness with long blonde hair.

"CRYSTAL!" Shock spread across both their faces.

"I told you, you shouldn't reject me. You will face the consequences!" She bowed her head and leaned down on one knee. "They are here your Highness!" Dark energy swirled around the throne. A dark figure began to emerge.

She had long, flowing black hair and eyes. A dress fell past her knees with a chain belt across her hips. A cloak flowed out behind her. The dress split down the middle with more chains across it and running down her arms and legs. She began laughing louder and louder.

"It's about time I get to meet you two! Face to face! I am Ruler of the Darkness and Shadows…I am Queen Morgana…the ultimate Goddess of Evil!"


	15. The Omega Curse

Chapter 15

The Omega Curse

The woman laughed some more, then looked over at Crystal. "So these are the people you want revenge taken upon?" She asked. Crystal stood back up from her bow and turned to face the Queen.

"Yes your Majesty…make her suffer!" She yelled, pointing right at Rinoa. Morgana smiled wickedly.

"Very well my dear child. You will get the revenge you seek." She raised her arms above her head, brought them down across her chest, and then thrust them out towards Rinoa and Squall. "Shadows of the night come forth, claim the heart of that which contains light, cover it in darkness with your plague, send with it pain from your poisons, condemning it to the darkest depths of your world! Make this girl suffer the pain she has brought upon my dear child!" Dark energy burst from her hands, whipping around Squall and Rinoa.

"Hold on!" Squall yelled through the loud gusts of wind. He pulled Rinoa closer, trying to shield her. After a few minutes, the strong wind stopped. They looked up at the Queen in her throne. She began laughing maniacally. Crystal was too.

"What are you laughing at?" Rinoa yelled up at the two.

"Stupid little girl! You don't know…do you?"

Rinoa glared up at her. "I don't know what?"

"One you love will soon disappear from your very eyes!" She began laughing again.

"What do you mean?" She screamed. Anger was flooding through her veins.

"Why don't you look behind you?" Morgana said, a smile creeping on her face.

Rinoa turned around. Squall sat on the ground, holding his chest and gasping for breath. "Squall! What's wrong?" She ran over and knelt down beside him.

"I…I…don't know!" He said breathing in hard, and struggling with his words. Rinoa turned back towards the throne.

"What did you do to him you Witch?"

"Aw, you look upset. I just put a simple curse on him."

"A curse? What kind of a curse?" She clenched her fists tighter and tighter.

"If you really want to know…then very well. In three days at exactly eleven on the third night, his heart will be completely submerged in darkness. Every minute and second, another part of him is being clouded by it."

"How could you? You're such a WITCH!" Rinoa looked over at Crystal. "I thought you liked him!"

Crystal looked at her, excitement in her eyes. "I do…"

"Then why are you killing him? Why don't you take me instead? It's me you hate, right?"

"True…I do despise you, but watching you have to live on without him in your life, is much more enjoyable for me to watch. All the pain, the hole burning through your heart at this very moment."

Rinoa could feel tears pouring down her cheeks. She ran back over to Squall and wrapped her arms around him. "It's okay. I'm right here…everything will be okay."

"Enjoy your last three days together!" Crystal said loudly. The room began to swirl around and around once again. Rinoa saw the throne vanish, but the laughter still rang through her ears. She closed her eyes. When she opened them, she found herself and Squall lying in the hallway they had been walking in moments before they were transported there.

"Squall!" She yelled as she saw him begin gasping for oxygen again. She stood up and looked around for anyone to help her. "I have to get him to the infirmary!" She ran down the hall, when she saw Zell strolling around the cafeteria. "Zell!" She cried out, relieved to see a familiar face. He looked up from the floor.

"Rinoa! What's wrong?" He had noticed her tear stricken face as she ran towards him.

"It's Squall! You have to help me!" She grabbed his hand, leading him down the hallway. When they reached Squall, Zell's mouth dropped.

"Squall! Hey buddy! Are you okay?" He didn't wait for a reply. He lifted him off the ground and told Rinoa to get the other side of him. "Let's get him to the infirmary and pronto." They carried him down the many halls till they reached Dr. Kadowakki's office.

"Hey Doc!" Zell yelled. Dr. Kadowakki looked up from her desk and horror came across her face.

"What happened?" She asked them as she led them towards a vacant bed. They propped his head up on a pillow and put a wet rag across his forehead. The doctor turned to Rinoa who was still crying. "Tell me dear…what happened? I need to know so I can cure him."

Rinoa nodded her head. "We were coming from lunch when the hallway swirled around us. When it stopped we were in darkness. Then Crystal appeared and with her, a Queen! Crystal said she brought us there because she wanted revenge against me for Squall not liking her! Then the Queen granted her wish and put a…a …a curse on him!" Rinoa burst out into tears again.

"It's okay…keep going. What kind of a curse was it?" The doctor asked her.

"I don't know. She said that darkness is covering his heart and that in three days at exactly eleven on the third night, he'll DIE!" Rinoa couldn't control herself anymore. She threw her arms around Zell and began crying into his shoulder.

"Oh dear!" A grim expression crossed Dr. Kadowakki's face. "This is bad!"

"What do you mean? You can cure him, right? Tell me you can!"

"I'm sorry Rinoa. That Queen put an Omega curse on him. They are nearly unstoppable!" Rinoa looked up at this.

"You said NEARLY! That must mean that there is a way!" She now had her hands on the doctor's shoulders, shaking her.

"There is a way…it's just that…it's very dangerous."

"I don't care if it's dangerous! Tell me! What can I do?"

Dr. Kadowakki sighed. "According to legend, there is an old temple hidden deep within the forests of the Centra continent. Somewhere inside this temple they say is an amulet of great power and when held by a person of a pure heart, that it will cast it's light wherever there is darkness, healing those clouded by it's shadows."

"I'm going!" Rinoa said.

"Wait! Rinoa, it's a legend. It might not be true! Besides, you could get hurt!"

"I don't care! Everyone gets hurt. The way I feel in my heart right now is worse than anything that could harm me now! I have to try! I can't just give up on him! He would do the same for me! I know it!" There was silence in the room except for Squall's loud gasps.

Rinoa turned toward Squall. "It's okay Squall…I'll come back and help you. I promise. Nothing will stand in my way." Squall looked over at her and gave a weak smile.

"Be…ah…careful…" He said as he gripped his chest tightly.

"I will." She put her hand in her pocket and pulled out the charm of the lion that had been on her necklace. "I want you to have this. Stay strong and fight back." She placed it in his other hand. Then she leaned down and whispered something in his ear that the doctor and Zell couldn't hear. "I love you Squall." Then she turned and walked out of the room.

"I'll give him any kind of medicine I can that will help him in the least." The doctor said as she followed Rinoa.

"You might need help on this journey. I should go with you!" Zell said from behind.

"No!" Zell jumped a little at how fast she answered it. He was a little offended too.

"I'm sorry Zell, but I have to do this on my own. It's between me…and the Queen. I'll be careful. You need to stay here and make sure he gets everything he needs. Let the others know what's happened and then prepare for battle in case the Queen decides to come for a visit."

"Alright. Good luck Rinoa. I know you can do it. Sorry about the spying and everything. I shouldn't have annoyed you so much."

"It's okay. Those are moments I'll always treasure. Thanks for everything." She walked over towards Doctor Kadowakki who was rummaging around in her desk.

"Ah ha! Here it is! This is the legend so you can use it on the way. It will tell you where the forest is. Here are some medical supplies and food as well. Please be careful dear." Rinoa smiled and then gave her a big hug.

"Thank you! You're like my second mom. I really appreciate your help." She put the bag on her back and ran back to Squall's room. "I need to get my weapon." She opened the closet door and pulled out her shooting star. As she began to close the door, she saw her outfit she had made. "I guess I'll take this too! As a reminder of him. Besides, if I need spare clothes, I'll have some then."

She ran down to the parking lot and saw Zell, Irvine, Selphie, Quistis, and Dr. Kadowakki waiting to say their "goodbyes." Tears were in all the girl's eyes. They all ran forward and hugged her and gave her more supplies. Irvine and Zell smiled.

"We put a communication system in that jet over there for you to tell us if everything's alright." Irvine said.

"Thank you!" Then she ran over and gave the guys a hug too. They were a little surprised but returned her embrace. "Well, I guess I better be going then." She ran over towards the silver jet.

"You do know how to fly one of those things, right?" Zell asked a little worried.

"Yeah! My dad is in the military. Flying one of these is like riding a pony! I've got it down pat!"

"Okay! You're free to go then. Call in when you land!"

"Okay!" She climbed into the pilot seat and started the engine. The sound echoed off the walls. The large parking lot door opened. The jet moved slowly down the runway and then picked up speed. In a matter of seconds it was in the air, flying high in the sky.


	16. The Lost Civilization

**Thanks for all the reviews everyone! I really appreciate it! Please leave more! Chapter 17 will be up shortly as well, so keep a lookout for it! Watch out for future stories that I'm getting ideas for. Love you guys! **

**RikkuTheif15**

Chapter 16

The Lost Civilization

The jet flew across the ocean with speed. "Awesome! This is one of those high power jets! My Dad said that they are the newest models. They can get you halfway across the world in about an hour!"

As she continued flying for about another twenty minutes, she saw dark gray clouds beginning to form around her. She could see her destination a little farther ahead. "Uh oh! I better hurry! I hope this storm won't form soon!" As if it had been rehearsed, a large bolt of lightning flashed on her left. "Crap!" She flew from side to side, trying to dodge the bolts of light. Then rain and hail began pounding on the glass.

"I can't see anything!" She panicked. Suddenly she felt the pilot controls get burning hot. "Ow!" She said as she let go of the wheel. Then she felt the plane begin to drop. It plummeted down towards the ocean. "I have to get out of here now!" She looked around the controls and saw an escape button. "Here goes nothing!" She pressed the button and immediately was propelled out of the plane by her seat. "This isn't any better!" She screamed. "What can I do now?" She was getting closer and closer to making a hard impact on the water that would probably knock her out. "I know! FLOAT!" She cried out.

Wings sprouted out from her back and she hovered in mid-air, inches above the water. "Cool, it really works! I never actually got to try it out!" She drifted slowly towards the land ahead of her. "According to the map, this is it…" The ground was brown with sand, but in the center, was a humongous forest that went on for who knows how long? Her wings disappeared and her feet touched the ground.

"I feel safer now!" She sighed in relief and turned back to face the ocean. She could see the remains of her jet sinking down into the bottom of the water. "Time to get what I came for!" She said. She walked into the forest, her weapon out in case of any danger. It was humid and very dense with trees and vines of all kinds. "I'm never going to find anything in here." She said to herself.

After about half an hour of traveling she found herself in a small clearing. "I'm so tired…I need to rest for a second." She walked towards a large boulder on the ground and sat down. "I might as well eat now while I have the chance." She took her backpack off and pulled out the sandwiches Selphie had given her and unwrapped them. "This looks so good!" She bit into it and then drank some of her water. "Ah, I can feel my energy coming back already!" The rest of her meal was gobbled down a few seconds later. "I better get going! There's no time to waste. Squall's life is on the line!"

Rinoa got up and began to walk away when an angry scream and rustling came towards her. Something was jumping out of the trees at her! "Ahhhhhhhh!" Rinoa screamed. She fell to the ground and fumbled around to get her weapon ready for action. Her shooting star hit the side of a sharp rock and cracked down the center. Now she was defenseless.

A figure was standing above her with a spear to her throat. Rinoa looked up at the mysterious person. It was a beautiful woman with long brown hair that fell down to her lower back. It was in a ponytail held up by a large golden band around it. Her wrists and ankles had these bands, too. Her top was made of leaves and showed off her masculine stomach. The skirt was two large leaves that had been tied around the middle by a vine. The boots were knee-high and vines were wrapped around her mid-thigh.

"Who dares impede on this humble Sanctuary?" The woman said loudly. Rinoa was trembling.

"I…I'm sorry! I don't mean any harm! I'm just trying to get to the temple of legend!"

The woman gave her a curious stare. Then she brought the spear closer to Rinoa's face. "Why do you seek the temple's help?"

"You see, there's this guy and he needs help! A Queen put a curse on him! I was told that the only way I could save him would be to find the amulet in the temple on this island!" The woman didn't say anything. "Please, you have to let me go! He needs my help right now or he'll die!"

At last the woman spoke. "What is your name young one?"

"R…Rinoa."

"Come with me Rinoa…" Rinoa stood up and watched as she began to walk away.

"Wait! Who are you?" Rinoa asked her.

"Me? My name is Makita. I am an Amazon warrior that protects this land. Now please follow me…" Rinoa was reluctant, but decided it would be safer if she listened to her. She didn't want to get herself on the end of the woman's spear.

They walked for what seemed like eternity to Rinoa when the woman stopped and turned to face her. "We're here…" She said.

"Where's here?" Rinoa asked. The woman pulled a leaf away to reveal a switch. She pressed a button and a wooden wall of trees in front of them begin to lift up. Rinoa was speechless.

"Come on…" The Amazon walked through the entrance, Rinoa behind her. Rinoa's eyes opened wide.

"Wow!" She said.

"This is the Amazon village. We are the last remaining people of this race."

"I'm sorry. What happened?" Makita looked over at her, as if deciding if she was trustworthy or not. She walked over towards a small hut and came back out with wood.

"Sit down while I start a fire. It is getting dark." Rinoa followed her orders and walked over to the log on the ground. Makita rubbed two stones together and eventually, a warm light reflected on her cheeks. She got up and sat down with Rinoa.

"I will now tell you my people's history." As she spoke those words three more girls dressed just like her, one with black hair, the other two with blonde and red, came and sat down next to the fire as well.

"About one hundred years ago, we were a very populated race. We were skilled warriors that laughed in the face of danger. That was until…the Sorceress arrived. She came out of nowhere from a different dimension! Everyone fought bravely, but in the end she killed them all…except for four. Two girls and two boys were all that was left. From them, our race continued." Everyone was silent.

Rinoa then spoke up. "Excuse me, but how did they get rid of this sorceress?"

"They used an amulet of great power. It spread it's light and incased her in her own darkness for eternity…To this day, Sorceress Morgana lives sealed inside it."

Rinoa jumped up off her seat. "What? Did you just say Sorceress Morgana?"

"Yes!" The Amazon looked very angry at the sound of the Sorceress's name.

"That's the woman that put the curse on the guy I'm trying to save!"

The Amazons all stood up at this comment. "What! You mean to tell me that she broke out of her seal? That's impossible!"

"Well, I'm guessing she did. She put an Omega curse on my boyfriend! You have to show me to the temple!" Rinoa could feel tears on her cheeks again.

"An Omega curse! That's how she killed our people. She made them suffer slowly in pain. If it's true she has been released, we will help you!" The Amazons all brought out their spears and began to twirl them around.

"You will?" Rinoa asked, her heart full of hope.

"Yes! This is a battle we have not yet finished." Makita walked back into another hut and brought out her spear. Then she looked at Rinoa. "Are you going to fight in that?"

Rinoa looked down at her clothes. She hadn't noticed at all the bad shape they were in from her jet crashing and her struggle through the forest. Her weapon was useless as well.

"Do you need some of our clothes?" Makita asked her.

"No. Don't worry about it…I've got more." For some reason, wearing leaves as clothing, didn't make Rinoa feel all that curious to try it on. She walked into the hut and pulled out her version of Squall's outfit. She could smell his cologne still on it. "Oh Squall…please keep on fighting. Don't give up on me!" She whispered to herself.

She came out a few minutes later and walked over towards the other Amazons. They all stared at her as she came forward. "Do you need a weapon?" Makita asked.

"Ah…no. I've got one." She walked back in the hut and came back out with her gunblade she had bought to go with her outfit.

"You have an interesting choice in clothes and weapons." Makita said.

"Yeah…but they're special to me." Makita watched Rinoa's face and saw her eyes beginning to form tears.

"Let's get going!" She said loudly to everyone. Rinoa snapped out of her daze and followed the group of four Amazons back out into the forest, towards the temple.


	17. The Temple of Light

Chapter 17

The Temple of Light

Rinoa and the Amazons ran through the forest as quiet as possible. Squall only had two days left. Each hour, his pain would get worse. Every second was precious and had to be used wisely.

"How far is the temple?" Rinoa asked gasping for breath.

"About five more miles. We must travel quietly though."

"Why?" Rinoa asked.

"We are in the Dragons land now." Rinoa stared at her, her mouth open.

"Dragons! There are dragons?"

"Yes…this is their territory. We don't usually have problems with them because we stay on our land most of the time. So, if we want one to stay away, then we'll need to be as quiet as possible."

They continued slowly through the dense trees and plants. Birds sat on tree limbs calling to one another while monkeys hopped from tree to tree. There was no other sound until Rinoa stepped on a twig. It broke in half. Everyone stopped and was silent. Dragons could here a sound one mile away.

They didn't hear any strange sounds, so they continued on. As Rinoa walked, she looked down at the ground. "Hey! Check that out!" Rinoa whispered to Makita in front of her. Makita stopped and turned to see what Rinoa was pointing at. The Amazon's eyes got big.

"Nobody move!" Makita whispered slowly to them.

"Why?" Rinoa asked.

"Because that is a dragon egg which means…" She didn't have to finish her sentence because just then a black dragon with spikes going down its spine came crashing out of the trees. It spread its wings and roared. Rinoa didn't know what to do.

"Amazons, ATTACK!" Makita yelled. The women all ran forward, spears in hand and ran right for the dragon. Two jumped onto its back while the other one distracted it. Makita ran towards its side. Rinoa watched in shock.

The Amazon's stabbed their spears into its tough hide as hard as they could. Their attempts were becoming futile though. Rinoa couldn't stand it anymore. She had to do something! Without thinking she jumped forwards and yelled, "Triple Blizzaga!" Ice burst from under the dragon's feet, making it roar in agony. On the third hit, it fell to the ground, dead.

Makita ran towards Rinoa, a smile on her face. "Not bad…I underestimated you." Rinoa smiled back, returning her kindness. The other Amazons jumped off the dragon and ran back to join them. "Oh, I'm sorry if I never told you the names of my fellow warriors. This is Shaltwan." She pointed to the girl with blonde hair. "The one with black hair is Reliquan and the one with red hair is Tennetra. Now that we are all acquainted we shall journey on."

They continued on and on, for another three miles and then stopped at a nearby stream. Rinoa took out her water bottle and began to fill it with water when she saw a dark shadow forming in the water a few feet from her. She pulled back just as something jumped out at her.

Squall lay in the infirmary gripping his chest. "Rinoa…ah…" He said weakly. Dr. Kadowakki walked towards him and gave him some pain medicine.

"I'm not sure if this will have any affect, but it's worth a try!" Suddenly the door burst open. Zell ran in out of breath.

"Hey Doc! We lost contact with Rinoa! Something must have happened to her jet!" Dr. Kadowakki looked up worriedly.

"I'm sure she'll be just fine. Have faith…" They both walked out of the infirmary and down the hall.

Squall sat up in his bed. "Rinoa's in trouble! I have to help her…" He slid himself off the bed and grabbed his gunblade from the corner of the room. He wrote a quick note as best he could and then walked slowly down the hallway towards the parking lot. There was one more jet left. He made his way towards it and stumbled inside.

"I have to be with her…I promised her I wouldn't disappear." He closed the top of the jet and then set his destination. Then he pressed the autopilot. The jet hovered off the ground and then flew off into the air.

An hour later he saw the island. He landed the jet carefully on the shore and climbed out. He fell to the ground in pain. "This needs to stop! Ah! I have to protect her!" Using his gunblade, he pulled himself off the ground. "This will take me forever to find her, but, I have to trust myself and use every skill I've ever learned. I have to make it out of here alive!" He walked towards the forest, using his gunblade to help support his weight.

Rinoa screamed. The Amazon's turned and looked her way to see what was wrong. Then there was a sound such as medal hitting teeth. Rinoa looked up, and could feel herself wanting to cry. "Squall!" She yelled. The creature had bitten down on his sword which had gone through the top of its mouth. It slowly fell back into the water in a coil.

Squall fell to the ground. Rinoa caught him and held him in her arms. "Why did you come here? You might make yourself worse!" She began to cry.

"I…I couldn't let you go unprotected…because…I ah…" He gripped his chest as a sharp pain shot throughout his body. "I love you…" He said. Rinoa opened her eyes and held him closer.

"Oh Squall!" The Amazons stood there watching the whole scene. Then, Makita stepped forward.

"Are you the one infected with the Omega curse?" She asked him. He nodded his head weakly up and down. "We will help you on your quest to destroy Queen Morgana and save your heart from the shadows."

"Thank you…" He said slowly. Two of the amazons walked over to Squall and each took one of his arms and draped it around themselves to help him walk. Rinoa walked a little ahead of them, a smile on her face.

"Everything will be alright…I promise." She told him. Squall stared at her and managed to smile back.

"Your wearing your outfit…" He said.

"Yeah…it reminds me of you." They stared deeply at each other till Makita broke the silence.

"The Temple of Light is just ahead. We need to hurry so we can get there before sundown. If we don't, the dragons will feed on us for their dinners tonight." Everyone nodded in agreement and then headed onward.

They walked and walked for another mile when Rinoa finally saw an old pyramid in a clearing. It was very old, the stones chipped and cracked. On all sides it had steps that led to the top. Around it were sacred statues of warriors and beasts. "This is the Temple of Light. What you seek is not on top, but inside on the bottom!" Makita said.

The group walked forwards and to the large door. Across it was a message:

"Thou that comes in here with no light in their heart, shall be delivered to another dimension and trapped in the temple for all eternity in the chambers of darkness, and never be free unless the seal becomes broken by thou who has the power of the universe in their hands!"

"Well, I guess we know what will happen if we aren't good people then right?" Rinoa said with a little laugh. To tell the truth, she was pretty worried. Was her heart pure? She had lied a couple of times, but did that not make her pure? "Here goes nothing!" She thought to herself. She slowly opened the door, a bright light coming through the opening.


	18. The Betrayer

Chapter 18

The Betrayer

Rinoa opened the temple doors. Bright lights filed out through the opening. Everyone shut their eyes and covered their faces with their hands. It died down soon though. Rinoa brought her arms down and looked back at the others.

"Well, here goes nothing…" She stepped forward and into the temple. Her heart was beating so fast. She continued to walk for about another five feet and then yelled out happily, "I'm okay! I knew I had a pure heart!"

Everyone sighed with relief. Next, Squall stumbled in beside her followed by the Amazons. Rinoa looked over at Makita. "Where is the amulet?" Makita looked carefully at her for a moment before looking across the room at a dark pit. "It's down there?" Rinoa asked. She walked towards the pit and looked down. It was pitch black, like an endless cavern.

"The amulet had to be well hidden to be protected. We must hurry if you want to save your friend." She gazed over at Squall who had started breathing hard yet again. "This will be a test of loyalty, bravery, and strength…Are you willing to go?" She asked in a mysterious voice.

Rinoa looked straight into the Amazon's eyes. "Yes, I have to save his life. I will do whatever it takes, even if it means risking my own life!" Squall jerked his head up at this.

"Don't do anything like that Rinoa…ow…I would rather you live on…ah…instead of me…" He grabbed his chest. The pain was getting worse.

"Squall! Don't say that!" Rinoa said.

"But it's true…I would never want anything to happen to you…" Rinoa could feel her eyes beginning to water. She leaned down and gave him a quick hug.

"Well, don't worry because we're all going to get out of this thing together!"

Rinoa stood up and walked back over to the gap in the stone floor. She looked around the room to see if there was anything that could be useful. The room was dark, but lit by torches on the walls, the floor was stone cold, mold was everywhere, and eerie sounds echoed on the walls. On the ground next to a statue of a gargoyle, there lay a rope. Rinoa ran over and grabbed it.

"Hey guys, do you think this will work?" She asked them holding it up in the light. Makita walked forward to examine it.

"It is quite old…and could break easily. It would be very risky…"

"Yeah, but I have to do this. It's the only way. Trust me, I'll be alright." Rinoa took the rope and began to tie one end of it around her waist and into her belt for extra support. Then she handed the other end to the Amazons.

"I'm going to climb down the edge and you guys will lower the rope slowly until I reach the bottom."

"What if there is no bottom?" Makita asked warily.

"There will be…besides, aren't you supposed to know that if you've been guarding it?"

"Well, I've never actually seen the amulet or the inside of this temple. My ancestors just told us the stories…"

"Oh…" Rinoa sat on the edge of the gap and began to lower herself. Squall then grabbed her arm before she dropped down.

"Be careful Rinoa…I love you." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips. Rinoa smiled.

"I love you too Squall." Then she dropped down into the pit completely.

Rinoa could feel herself getting engulfed into the darkness. She couldn't see anything around her. She just kept on going down and down. A few minutes later, she heard a noise. She listened carefully. "That sounds like…" She didn't have time to finish her thought. The rope suddenly ripped apart from old age and Rinoa began to drop into the darkness. She screamed.

The Amazons who were holding the rope felt the sudden drop of weight disappear. "Rinoa!" Makita screamed down. They heard her yells echo throughout the temple as she fell. Then, there was silence. Squall clambered over to the edge.

"Rinoa!" He yelled. "Answer me!" Still there was silence. Squall began to panic, horrible thoughts coming across his mind. "This can't be happening!" He thought to himself.

Rinoa stopped screaming. She had landed on something. It was soft. "I'm still alive!" She said quickly to herself. Then she looked up into the pit's opening and yelled up at the others. "Hey guys! I'm okay! There's a soft landing down here!" She continued to look around but couldn't see anything until all of a sudden, torches began to light by themselves.

When Squall heard her voice yelling back up at them, a huge wave of relief washed over his whole body. The Amazons also relaxed from their tense positions. "Do you think we should just jump down there then?" Asked Shaltwan, the blonde Amazon.

Makita walked back towards the pit and took a closer look at the walls of it. "There are small stones sticking out of the wall. We can climb down some using them and then jump off the rest of the way down…"

"What about him?" Tennetra, the red haired Amazon asked.

"We can lower him on what's left of the rope and then he'll have to drop the rest of the way…" Makita answered. "Rinoa!" She yelled down into the pit. "I'm going to drop Squall down on the rope as far as it will go, but he'll have to fall the rest of the way down…"

Rinoa, who was down at the bottom yelled back an okay. The Amazons tied the rope around Squall and then lowered him as far as they could. "We're dropping you now!" Makita yelled to Squall. They let go of the rope and waited till Rinoa said that he was okay.

The Amazons then jumped onto the pit's walls and began to scale down them until they couldn't see anymore. Then they let go and landed softly at the bottom.

They all stood up and gazed around the new area they were in. The walls were four stories high, with huge columns holding them up. Torches were lit in a straight line across the wall, flickering off the stones. Drapes were hanging on the walls. They would have looked exquisite at the time when it was built, but now it was tattered and torn with age. At the end of the long room, there was a lone light. It was shining on a stand. Rinoa walked forwards and squinted. In the stand was an object. It was the amulet.

"There it is Squall! I told you everything would work out in the end!" Rinoa began to bound happily down the walkway towards the pedestal.

"Stop!" Makita yelled out to her. "There are many traps guarding the amulet!" Rinoa stopped just in the nick of time. Two blades dropped and began swinging right in front of her. If Makita hadn't stopped her, she would have been in pieces right now. She was about two inches away from them and could feel the air rush past her arms.

Rinoa backed up a little and then watched the blades, looking for a pattern in their movements. Then without a warning she ran through them as fast as she could go. Everyone screamed, telling her to stop. She made it past them and turned around to smile.

"It's okay guys, I can handle a few traps!" She turned back around to face the next trap. She didn't see anything trap-like at the moment. Then she looked up at the ceiling. All the way down, till she reached the pedestal, were spikes. "I bet those will come down once I step forward." She thought to herself. "Well, here goes!"

She took a few steps back and then ran as fast as she could. The spikes were coming down pretty fast. She heard one hit the ground behind her. "Don't look back…just keep going!" She said to herself. The others were screaming at the other end of the room. "I have to do this for Squall!" When she reached the end she jumped the last few feet to the pedestal. Just as she did, the last remaining spikes landed, throwing dust into the air.

She stood back up and yelled down the long hall. "I'm okay you guys! I made it!" Then she turned back around to face the pedestal. "This is it…" Her voice trailed off at the end. She had reached her hand out to grab it, but a spear had been slammed down across the back of her hand.

"I don't think so!" The voice said. Rinoa looked up. Her eyes opened in disbelief.

"You!" Rinoa managed to say through her shocked emotions. In front of her stood Reliquan, the black haired Amazon warrior. "What are you doing?" She finally asked.

"Keeping you away from the amulet!" She replied. The smoke around them had finally cleared. Everyone at the other end of the room gasped when they took in what was happening.

Makita was first to speak. "Reliquan! What do you think you're doing?"

Reliquan laughed an eerie laugh. "You are fools. Aren't you? I'm keeping you away from what rightfully belongs to my Queen. After all, she is living inside it!" Makita's face was struck with horror.

"What do you mean?"

"Isn't it obvious Makita? I've been working for Queen Morgana this whole time."

"You…You BETRAYER!" Makita had started to run down to the other end, her sphere out, and screaming. "You will pay for this!" Just as she got closer, the walls and space around them began to contort and swirl around them. Then, there was darkness.

"Not again!" Rinoa thought. Then she caught sight of Squall and the others and ran towards them. She leaned next to Squall and gripped his arm tightly. Laughter began to ring everywhere. Then just as before, a throne appeared. "Here we go!" Rinoa said. Out of the air Crystal appeared and landed on her knee and bowed, then came the Queen.

Makita gasped, as did the other Amazons. "You!" They all said together.


	19. The Queen's Reign

Chapter 19

The Queen's Reign

Queen Morgana looked down at the Amazons and smiled. "Looks like I've captured the few remaining Amazons! Ha ha ha ha!"

Makita glared up at her. "Where are we? How did we get here?"

"I brought you here…" She replied.

"Where is here?" Makita asked in anger.

"Here is inside the Amulet!" The Queen started to laugh.

Makita and everyone gasped. They couldn't believe it. "How is that even possible?" Screamed Makita.

"You underestimate the power of darkness. I would have expected more from an Amazon…" The Queen gazed down at Reliquan, who was on one knee, bowing. "Good work my dear child. You shall get your reward as promised."

"Reliquan! How could you betray us? What would make you even consider working for her? Answer me!" Makita screamed at her once again.

Reliquan stood up and her shoulders began to shake. Then she dropped her head back in laughter. "My Queen promised to give me more powers to make me stronger than just the warrior I am on my own. Then I could eliminate you and rule over our people while she rules the rest of the world!" She smiled wickedly.

"You TRAITOR!" Shaltwan had leapt towards Reliquan with her spear raised. Just as she reached her, a dark barrier formed and shot a beam of light out at her, throwing the Amazon backwards. She slammed into the ground.

"Shaltwan! Are you okay?" Makita asked her, rushing to her side.

"Yes…I'll be fine." She got up off the floor and stood back up.

"That's just like an Amazon…Resist the pain and stand back up as a proud warrior…your ancestors did the same." Morgana told them.

Rinoa and Squall had been watching the whole scene from a little farther away. They stood up together and walked towards their friends. "Is everyone alright?" She asked the Amazons. They all turned to look at her concerned face, but all nodded their heads. "Everyone…It all comes down to this moment. We have to stand our ground and be strong. This is the final battle, but I know we can do it!"

"Do you have a plan?" Makita asked her questionably.

Rinoa shook her head. "No, not really…but I have an idea. Okay, Makita and Tennetra, I want you two to take care of Reliquan and Crystal!" Makita shook her head at this.

"I'm sorry Rinoa, I have to fight the Queen…It's personal…" Rinoa stared deep into her eyes. After a few minutes of deciding she nodded her head.

"Alright, but promise me you'll be careful!"

"I promise!"

Rinoa turned her attention back to the others. "That means that Tennetra will fight Reliquan and me and Makita will fight Morgana…That leaves Crystal…"

"I'll do it…" Squall had spoken up.

"You can't! You're too weak! You might hurt yourself worse than you already are! Let Shaltwan handle it!" Rinoa gazed at him with a worried expression. Squall lifted his hand and put a finger on her lips.

"Shaltwan is injured too badly. I have to do this…It's like you said…I would do anything to protect you. I have to make myself useful. Everything will be alright. Crystal is nothing. Trust me…" Rinoa was lost for words. His eyes were burning into hers. It felt like he knew exactly what she was thinking.

"Alright." She said in a whisper. "I love you…"

Squall smiled. "I love you, too…" He pulled her towards him and kissed her lips for a few seconds and then released her.

Just then the ground started to shake. Morgana was hovering off her throne. Crystal and Reliquan beside her. All had glowing masses of dark energy swirling around them. "Here is the power I promised you my dears!" Morgana said laughing. Jets of energy shot from her hands and into both Crystal and Reliquan. They screamed at first, but then began laughing with delight.

"I can feel it! This power is incredible! I've never felt anything like it!" Reliquan said. When the power waves stopped, the two girls touched back down to the ground.

Rinoa turned to look at the others, they returned her gaze. "This is it everyone! Let's do it!" Tennetra ran towards Reliquan and Squall towards Crystal. Makita and Rinoa waited for them to begin fighting, to keep them busy and away from the Queen.

Tennetra jabbed her spear in the ground and vaulted over it, jumping right at Reliquan. She threw her leg out and kicked her right across her face. Reliquan gasped. "You will pay for that!" She stuck out her hand and began to summon dark energy all around her. The next second, meteor rocks were falling from the sky at Tennetra. She back flipped and somersaulted in every direction to dodge them.

Crystal had seen Squall coming and had shot him with a blast of her new dark energy. "You fool! You can't defeat me…you are three times as weak as before, thanks to the curse." Squall lay on the ground, his gunblade in his right hand. Crystal walked towards him and put her boot on top of his chest, near his throat. "Should I kill you now, or wait for the curse to finish you off? It's such a shame that you'll die either way, and you were so cute, too." She made a little pout face.

"I don't think so!" Squall said. Crystal looked at him curiously. Then he grabbed her leg and threw her on the ground, him on top now.

"Isn't this a surprise? You still have some strength left." Without a warning she threw her arms around his neck. "Might as well kiss you while we're like this before you die…" Before she could even get the chance, Squall brought his gunblade up to her throat. She laughed. "You wouldn't really kill me now would you?" She asked with a grin on her face.

"You tried to take Rinoa away from me! That is something I could never forgive you for!" Instead of using his sword, he used an absorb spell, to drain away her remaining health.

Crystal took one last breath and said, "You weren't worth the trouble anyways…" Then she closed her eyes, her head falling to the side. Squall got up and looked around the room. Rinoa and Makita were standing there watching the Queen carefully.

Tennetra and Reliquan had been battling for quite some time now. Tennetra's arm had been cut pretty bad, but she kept on.

Shaltwan sat off to the side watching everyone fight. No one had wanted her to help in the risk of her getting more injured. She couldn't take it anymore though. She stood up slowly and grabbed her spear.

"Ready for your demise?" Reliquan asked Tennetra laughing. Then a voice sounded from behind her.

"You mean yours!" Shaltwan had yelled. Before Reliquan could turn around all the way, Shaltwan had sent her spear flying through the air. In the next moment, Reliquan was screaming in agony. The spear had pierced her straight in the back. She fell to the ground and toppled over. Tennetra ran next to her.

"I'm sorry…I betrayed you…I never should have done it…forgive me…friends…" Then she choked and was gone. Tennetra could feel tears beginning to well up inside of her. She had been very close to Reliquan, they were like sisters. As an Amazon, she knew she would have to face her friends if this ever happened.

Shaltwan walked next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It's alright…She's free from her misery…" Tennetra looked up into the Amazon's eyes and then hugged her.

"Of course…you're right. We have a bigger job to do right now!" They stood up and looked across the room towards the Queen. She wore an expression of hatred on her face.

"You imbeciles! You lost me my loyal children! You will pay!" She stepped down off her throne and began to walk towards them. As she did so, she threw her cloak off. She now wore the same black top with chains that cut down the middle, but her dress was cut down the sides of her leg, allowing for more fluid movements.

Shaltwan, Tennetra, and Squall ran over beside Rinoa and Makita as the Queen advanced on them. "I will crush you all!" She screamed at them. Fire emblazoned out of her hands and stalked towards them. Everyone dodged out of its way as it made impact with the ground they had been standing on moments before.

The Amazons leapt forward in an attempt at a back attack. The Queen had seen it coming though and shot them back against the wall. Rinoa glared at her. Morgana smiled wickedly and then shot more fire at the girls behind her. The Amazons screamed in pain. After the fire cleared away Rinoa's eyes opened in horror.

Makita and the others lay in a heap, burnt and bloody. Cuts and bruises were on their arms, legs, and stomachs. Tennetra tried to stand, but fell. "Whoops…I must have used too much power on them…too bad." Morgana laughed maniacally. Then with a swipe of her hand, the Amazons hovered above the ground. They flew to a side of the room and ropes formed around their bodies, holding them to the walls.

"I'm sorry Rinoa…please forgive us…" Makita said weakly. She smiled, but then fell into unconsciousness.

Rinoa turned back to face the Queen. "You will pay for this!" She yelled. Morgana just laughed again. Then she stopped and looked at Rinoa. Her eyes grew larger and then she closed them. Rinoa could hear a strange sound. She turned around and saw a wave of fire blowing straight at her from behind! She closed her eyes, ready to take the hit.

She felt heat but no pain. She opened her eyes to see Squall in front of her, taking on the full blast of it. "Squall!" He fell to the ground. "Why did you do that for me again? You're hurt too bad to fight anymore…Please, let me handle it!"

He smiled up at her. "I've told you before…I love you so I'll always be here to protect you…even if the whole world was against you…I would be your knight…"

Rinoa could feel tears sliding down her face. "Oh Squall…you mean so much to me. I just wish we could go back before all of this happened! I love you so much!" She wrapped her arms around him and cried into his shoulder. Squall layed his hand on her back.

"I love you too Rinoa…but you have to beat this Queen here and now…we can't go back…"

"I can't do it by myself!" Rinoa cried out.

"Yes you can Rinoa…trust me! Believe in yourself!" He held his hand up and placed it on her cheek. Then with another smile drifted into unconsciousness.

"Squall? Squall!" Rinoa screamed. "Don't leave me! I need you!"

Queen Morgana had just sat watching the whole scene. She began laughing even louder than before as she made Squall disappear from Rinoa's arms and reappear on the wall with the Amazons.

"Give him back!" Rinoa screamed at her, tears falling down her cheeks.

"Never! The world has already begun to be covered in my beautiful shade of darkness. Soon you and everyone else on this measly little planet will belong to me! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!"


	20. Hidden Powers

Chapter 20

Hidden Powers

Queen Morgana's laughter went on and on. She waved her arms above her, forming a hologram of the planet Earth. "You can see for yourself. The people of your world are kneeling down before me!"

Rinoa looked up at the hologram. Her eyes opened in horror. "No…this can't be happening…" The world was completely covered in darkness, not a single light.

"Why don't you just give up? You couldn't possibly defeat me all alone. Your friends are no longer beside you. Join me and you will be free from pain and save your friends…What do you say?"

"I…I…" Rinoa's hands began to tremble as tears ran down her face. "I will never join you! And I will never give up!"

"Poor little girl. You must still be confused. Save yourself the pain and come with me…"

"For the last time, I won't! My friends are counting on me! I can't just desert them! I will fight as long as there is a breath in my body!"

"Such a pity…very well then. If that is what you desire…Than you can join your friends!" Morgana began shooting fire once again. Rinoa jumped to her left, but not soon enough. Just as she jumped, another stream of power scraped her arm. She could feel warm blood trickling down.

Rinoa struggled to get up. Morgana shot another fire bolt at her. It hit straight on her left leg. Rinoa fell to the ground, gasping. More blood was falling. "I can't give up…" She whispered slowly to herself. "Everyone's counting on me…Squall…Makita…Shaltwan…Tennetra…I promise I'll set you free." She squeezed her eyes shut. Her fists tightened, her knuckles turning white.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha! It looks like the little princess is hurt to bad to get back up again. It's your own fault." Morgana began to walk from her throne towards Rinoa. She continued to laugh until she was right above her limp figure on the ground. "Look at you…you're pathetic. Now you are kneeling at my feet!" She laughed wickedly.

Just then Rinoa could feel a strange heat building up inside her. She felt as light as air. Energy began to glow around her. Her body pulled itself off the floor and hovered above the ground. She hunched her back. Wings sprout out behind her and lengthened themselves. White feathers flew in every direction. Her body was enveloped in white light.

A pure white dress morphed onto her, the skirt stopping at mid-thigh, ending in a point. Golden bands wrapped around her arms, ankles, and neck. Around her waist, a golden belt with a red jewel in the center appeared, glowing.

Morgana closed her eyes in surprise. "What's happening?" She cried out. The bright light dimmed, and she uncovered her eyes. "What? How can this be?" Rinoa stood hovering in mid-air, her hands together in front of her chest, her eyes closed. White wings spread out behind her back and a flowing pure white dress blew in the wind.

When all the light had gone, Rinoa's feet touched back down onto the ground. "You have tried to conquer and destroy my world. You have tried to eliminate my friends. Those are actions that can never be forgiven!" She opened her eyes and glared over at the Queen.

Morgana looked shocked. "How…what…what are you?" She asked in an angry tone.

Rinoa smiled. "Your eliminator!" Rinoa ran forward and attacked the queen. She flung her fist right on the side of her face and jabbed her leg into her stomach with a powerful blow, knocking the breath right out of her. Morgana fell to the floor, gasping for air. "That was for Squall!" Rinoa yelled down at her.

Morgana began to laugh. "I won't be so easily defeated, girl. I am Queen Morgana! Ruler of the Underworld and darkness! I will make you bow before me!" She stood up off the ground and dark energy surrounded her, clouding her from view. Rinoa waited patiently.

When the energy faded, Morgana's clothes had changed. She now wore skin tight black pants and matching long-sleeved shirt. The boots and gloves were black as well, making it harder to see her in the already dim room. "San-ka!" Morgana yelled. At these words, a sword appeared in her hands.

"Be prepared to meet your doom!" She said while laughing manically. "This will be your downfall!" She sprung forward.

Rinoa closed her eyes, her eyebrows furrowing in concentration. She thought deeply in her mind for help. "I call upon the great forces within the amulet; bestow upon me your powers. Lend me your strength!" Just like Morgana, a sword appeared in the air in front of Rinoa. She opened her eyes and gazed at the sword. It was encrusted at the top with the same red jewel that was on her belt. There was no more time to think on it as the Queen came ever closer with her own sword in hand.

She reached forward and grabbed the sword just as the Queen's struck down at her. In a flash of light, the swords met, blocking each other. The two women glared. They pulled the swords apart and Rinoa ducked down, throwing her leg around in a circular motion, knocking the Queen's feet out from under her. She fell to the ground with a thud, but quickly jumped back into action.

As Rinoa attacked her once again, Morgana caught her off guard. She turned her sword sideways, where she slid it right across Rinoa's face. Rinoa felt her flesh getting warm, knowing she had been cut. In anger she swung her sword around till it cut Morgan's arm.

"You will pay for that! No one disgraces Queen Morgana in her own realm!" More dark energy surrounded her the angrier she became. She threw her head back in laughter and sent waves of darkness in all directions. Rinoa hadn't been prepared for this. Each wave of energy cut through the ground like a razor, going in seven directions. Rinoa screamed as two of them hit her right on. Pain was creeping through every bone in her body.

"As I told you…I cannot be defeated." She grinned and stared up into Rinoa's screwed up face, fighting the unbearable pain. "Awe, it looks like you're in pain. I think I can fix that for you!"

Morgana pushed her hand out towards Rinoa and then over at the left wall. As if she were a puppet, Rinoa was thrown into the wall. She screamed at the impact and fell to the ground. She pushed her hands against the cold stone floor and tried to get back up, but fell back down in defeat. She groaned as she tried yet again, but failing all the same.

"If you had joined me you would have been saved by the pain that is creeping up inside of you at this very moment. Now it looks like you'll be joining your three friends!" She laughed once more.

Rinoa gazed up from the stone tiles into the Queen's evil and twisted face. "What do you mean…my three friends? You have captured four!"

"My poor dear…I mean your three Amazon friends."

"The Amazons! What about Squall? What are you planning to do to him? You've already made him suffer enough!"

"Squall? I plan on making him rule by my side, once I dispose of you!"

"What? You will never get away with that! I won't allow it!" Rinoa's anger was at the boiling point now. She couldn't take it any longer. Energy began to slowly wrap around her, her wings lifted her off the ground, to be standing in front of the Queen yet again. "This battle is not over yet!" She yelled.

The Queen's eyes opened in shock. "Why is this happening?" She thought to herself. "She should be down for good now. It's like every time I finally think I'm going to win, something else unexpected always happens in the end! I can't give up though! I've waited to long, being stuck in this stupid amulet. The world is almost completely mine, and it will be!"

Rinoa was glaring daggers at Morgana now. With a loud scream, the room was engulfed in a bright white light, the Queen shielding her face.


	21. The Queen's Knight

Chapter 21

The Queen's Knight

When the light had dimmed, Morgana uncovered her face. Rinoa had come back down on the ground, but her hands were glowing with power. In each one there was a power sphere, swirling around in her palms. Her eyes were glowing with hatred for the Queen. She began to walk towards her, no fear visible.

"I've had just about enough of this! You've tried to take everything away from that is precious!" A bolt of energy shot out of her hand and hit Morgana's right leg. "You took my Amazon friends!" She hit her again, this time her other leg. "Worst of all, you took the guy I love!" Rinoa gritted her teeth and thrust both her hands out, which shot two energy waves out, but morphed together becoming one. It flew through the air, right into the Queen's stomach.

She fell to the floor, gasping for breath. "I will make you feel, what you made Squall feel." Rinoa walked towards her and stared down at the fallen Queen. "It's not funny anymore…is it? When you feel what the other person felt…"

Morgana stared between her two hands pressed on the floor, sweat dripping down her face. "She's so strong! How is this possible!" She thought quickly to herself. She looked up into Rinoa's angry face, full of hatred. "Wait! I can defeat her, but not by my own hand!" Without wasting any time, Morgana pushed herself from the ground and began to chant. Rinoa watched speechless.

Rinoa gasped in disbelief. Squall had appeared down in front of Morgana, but something was wrong. He looked like he was defending her. Morgana began to chuckle. "Awaken my dear Prince!" When she spoke those words, Squall's eyes opened, but they were glowing red. He pulled out his sword as if in a trance.

"Squall! What's wrong with you?" Rinoa cried out. She walked forwards toward him, but stopped when Squall swung his blade down at her. "What's she done to you?" Her eyes opened wider in horror.

"He's under my spell now. The curse has been removed…but he has become my knight! He will protect me at any cost. You know what that means! In order to get to me…you must first defeat the one you love!"

Rinoa stood still, not daring to believe what she had just heard. "This can't be…it just can't be true…" She whispered in a low voice slowly to herself.

"He will do anything I command him to do. Like now for example…" Rinoa watched as Morgana walked towards Squall. She put her hand on his face and kissed him. Tears were flowing down Rinoa's face now. She couldn't stop them.

"No…no…NO!" Rinoa screamed. She put her hands on her head and screamed. "He would never leave me for a repulsive, ugly witch like you! He just wouldn't!"

Morgana turned to face Rinoa, a large grin spreading across her face. "Looks like you're wrong. He has left you and there's no denying it!" She turned back around and faced Squall. "Now my knight…Kill her!" She pointed her finger down at Rinoa's limp figure on the floor.

Squall turned towards Rinoa, drawing his sword as he walked ever closer. "Squall…don't do this! It's me…Rinoa!" She cried out.

"It's useless little girl! He can no longer hear you! His mind belongs to me and only me, for now and forever!"

Rinoa didn't know what to do. There was no time to think about it at the moment, for Squall had just leapt forward at her, his blade coming down fast. Rinoa rolled over backwards and flipped back up. He picked his sword up and ran back towards her and swung it left and right. Rinoa glanced around the room for her own blade. Then she spotted it. In a quick flash she ran to the right and slid across the floor, pulling her sword from out between two stone tiles.

She threw it up just in time to stop Squall's blade from stabbing her in the stomach. He continued with his assault, Rinoa just blocking. "I can't attack him! I don't want to! I just can't bring myself to hurt him!"

Morgana watched from her throne, smiling the entire time. It was just like her to have someone else to all her dirty work.

Rinoa jumped into the air, stretching out her white wings. She flew high up, when she heard a noise coming up behind her. Squall had shot a stream of fire up at her, knocking her to ground, as feathers flew in every direction. Her wings were practically destroyed. She wasn't able to fly from the damage. Half the feathers were gone on her left wing, as it hung limply at her side. She fell to the floor in exhaustion.

Squall began walking towards her again, a smirk across his face. "My Queen has given me orders to destroy you! I will and get my reward! I will rule by her side." He said as he came ever closer.

Rinoa shut her eyes, tears rolling down her face. She opened them and glared towards Squall, her mind made up. "Squall, did you forget everything that has happened? What about you and me? Remember when we met, when you protected me, all your promises? Were you lying to me when you said that you loved me?"

Squall stopped when he was standing above her. He raised his sword in the air. Rinoa glared at him and yelled one last sentence at him. "You told me, that even if the whole world was against me, you would stay by my side, you'd be MY knight!" Squall had begun to swing his blade down, but stopped at these last words.

"Your…your knight?" He asked. Rinoa couldn't tell anything from his mysterious expression. "I would never betray my Queen!"

"She's not your Queen! She's brainwashed you and turned you against me! You loved me!" Rinoa cried up at him.

"Love…I loved you…" He had lowered his sword back down and stared deeply into Rinoa's tear stained face.

"That's right…you loved me and I loved you!"

Queen Morgana was getting angrier by the minute. "You fool! You obey me and only me!" She shot dark energy out of her hand, making it engulf Squall. Squall gritted his teeth at the power surrounding him.

"Squall! I won't let her brainwash you anymore than what she has already done!" In a second, Rinoa had jumped in front of Squall and forced the energy to hit her instead. She screamed in agony. Morgana stopped and smiled.

"I guess I got rid of her one way or another…" She said to herself.

Rinoa fell towards the stone floor, but was gently caught. She looked up to see Squall above her. "Why did you do that?" He asked her. His eyes had a faraway, mysterious look to them.

Rinoa smiled up at him. "Because I love you. I would never let anything hurt you. You mean so much to me…" She grimaced as pain flooded through her entire body.

Squall stared at her for a moment, then his eyes opened wide, his distant expression fading. "Ri…Ri..Rinoa?" He asked her.

"Yes, do you remember now?" She asked him, hope filling her heart.

"I…I…I'm beginning to. Bits and pieces are flooding through my mind…" He closed his eyes in thought, and then began to speak once more. "Yes, I saved you from Seifer and a T-Rex. I asked you to a…a dance. You kissed me at my Birthday party, but then afterwards…I…I kissed you. We told each other that we loved one another for now and forever…" He opened his eyes and gazed back down at Rinoa, who was in his arms.

"That's right…" Rinoa said, forcing herself to smile through her pain. Squall pulled her closer to him and wrapped his arms tightly around her.

"It's all my fault! I caused you all of this pain!" He said, his voice quivering.

"Stop it! That's not true! Things happen for a reason. I know what I've realized from this!" Squall looked down into her light blue eyes. They were full of tears, but not sad tears, happy ones. Rinoa gulped. "It's made me realize how much I love you!" She whispered.

"Rinoa…" He said, but Rinoa put her finger on his lips to silence him.

"I know Squall. You don't have to say it in words. I know you love me." Squall smiled. Then he leaned down and gently pressed his lips against hers and then released her.

"I want to say it anyways…I love you Rinoa." Rinoa smiled and blushed.

"Isn't this just precious? The two lovebirds are together once more! I guess I'll just have to destroy you both!" Rinoa and Squall looked away from each other and towards the Queen who was standing up off her throne now. "I will not tolerate to be made a fool of in my own realm!"


	22. Powers of the Amulet

Chapter 22

Powers of the Amulet

A whirlwind of dark energy surrounded Morgana's body. She gripped her hands into a fist and grimaced. Just like Rinoa, she sprouted wings from her back. These were not white as Rinoa's had been though. They were black, as black as the night sky.

Squall stood up and offered his hand down to Rinoa, pulling her up off the ground. He looked down at Rinoa, pulling her chin up to his face, so that she was looking at him straight in the eyes.

"Rinoa, I'm going to give you my power. With it, your strength that you had at the beginning of this battle will be restored! Then you can defeat Morgana!"

"I…I can't do it by myself! I need you there with me!"

Squall smiled down at her. "But I am with you, always."

Rinoa stared back at him for a few more seconds. Then she closed her eyes, and nodded. "Alright, let's do it!" Squall took her hand in his and closed his eyes, she did the same. Where their hands met, it glowed a bright golden color. A stream of energy swirled from Squall's hand, up Rinoa's arm and enveloped her in its magnificent, warm light. Their hands fell apart.

Her white wings had formed new feathers, allowing for flight once again. Her wounds were also healed. When she looked at Squall he had collapsed to the floor. "Squall!" She cried, kneeling beside him.

"It's alright…I'll be fine! Now, do what you have to do!" He said in a low voice.

"I promise you! We will make it out of this alive!" Rinoa whispered back to him.

Rinoa stood back up and turned to face the queen. The two women glared at each other. Morgana spread her black wings as far as they would go, Rinoa doing the same. Within seconds, both had jumped into the air and were flying high above the ground.

"That was a wasted effort! Even if he gave you some of his own power, it won't help you now! You're too late!" Morgana shot fire balls out at her. Rinoa carefully flew from side to side, dodging as many as possible. When the last fire ball had made impact with the ground, Rinoa spun around and sent a wave of her own power. It was pure light, slithering towards her like a serpent.

The Queen returned the blast with her fire. The two powers met in the middle. Rinoa struggled, pushing her stream forward towards her enemy. Morgana did the same. The energy moved back and forth. Their strengths were equal. As both women pushed their beam harder, it exploded. The darkness was engulfed with light and flames.

Rinoa shielded her face with her wings and waited for the smoke to clear. Sure enough, Morgana was still there. "There has to be another way to defeat her!" She thought quickly to herself. "Wait! Of course, I can use the sword again! I just need to summon power from within the amulet once more!" She closed her eyes in prayer.

The Queen's eye's opened wide as she saw a light appear before Rinoa's floating figure. Out of the light appeared two daggers. Rinoa opened her eyes and saw her new weapons. She quickly grabbed the handles and flew for the Queen.

Morgana quickly made her own weapon materialize. Just as Rinoa's had been different, so was hers. She held a staff with sharp curved blades on both ends. Power erupted from the two weapons when they met.

Squall looked up at the two figures above him. "Rinoa looks just like an angel from here, with her wings and dress…" He said to himself. "There's got to be something else I can do to help her!" He glanced around in the darkness. Then he saw it. The Amazons were still trapped against the walls.

Squall pushed himself off the ground and stumbled towards his gunblade on the floor. He staggered over to Makita and lifted his sword high in the air. It came down, the sharp blade cutting the ropes that bound her. Squall caught her as she began to fall to the ground. Very gently, he shook her, trying to awaken her.

Makita's eyes opened and looked at her surroundings. "Where am I?" She asked in a confused whisper.

"We're in the amulet with Queen Morgana. Do you remember?"

"Queen…Queen Morgana…Yes, I do remember! She captured my fellow Amazons and me! The others!" She cried. Her head turned to see her friends still trapped against the wall. Grabbing her spear on the ground she began to hack at the ropes till they fell lose around them. The other girls slid down to the floor, but began to stir a few seconds later.

The Amazons stood up and looked over at Squall. "Where is Rinoa?" They asked him. Squall then pointed up into the air. The Amazon's eyes followed. They all gasped at the sight. Rinoa and the Queen were flying through the air at each other, making power ignite from their weapons at each impact.

"I don't believe it! The amulet bestowed upon her its power!" Makita said in amazement.

"Come on! Let's help her!" Shaltwan yelled to everyone. Makita threw her hand out to stop her.

"No! I'm afraid we can't. She is the only one capable of defeating her. All we can do is give her our strength, our power." Shaltwan looked angry at first, but nodded her head. "Let us give her all that she needs to end this battle!"

The Amazons walked forward and held each other's hands. Closing their eyes they began to chant. Squall watched, not sure what to think. Then without warning, a huge beam of light burst from the center of the circle they had formed and flown straight to Rinoa, covering her. Squall jumped from the ground. A split second later, the amazons were falling to the floor, one by one.

"What did you do?" Squall asked Makita. She glanced up into his worried eyes.

"Don't worry, she'll be fine. We gave her our strength, as you did. Now she should have all the power needed to destroy her!" Squall and the amazons all stared up at the girl hovering in the sky, who was glowing brighter, and stronger than ever before.

Rinoa could feel even more energy building up inside of her. "Be prepared, for this is the end of your reign!" She yelled across to Morgana. Rinoa clasped her hands together and then threw them out, sending out a huge beam of light. The Queen's eyes opened in horror.

Thinking quickly, Morgana shot a blast back to intercept Rinoa's. "I won't let you destroy me! My dream is almost complete!" They pushed with all their strength.

"This is it!" Rinoa thought to herself. "Now is the time to destroy her forever!" Power ran through her body like electricity, she felt it coming. Rinoa then pushed her arms harder and screamed, using all the strength and will power that was left. Her beam pushed Morgana's back at her.

"What this can't be happening! I am undefeatable! I am Queen Morgana, Ruler of Darkness!" Morgana tried to push it back, but failed miserably. The light over took her. Everyone closed their eyes and shielded their faces. It looked as if a giant flash bomb had been set off. The bright light slowly dimmed, smoke taking its place. The Amazon's and Squall looked up.

Squall's eyes gazed around the room. "Rinoa!" He called out. He couldn't see anything through all the smoke in the air. His heart was beating faster every second. "Rinoa!" He yelled again. Then he heard some crumbling of rocks. He turned around quickly to see them beginning to rise. His heart stopped, afraid it was Morgana. Instead, it was Rinoa.

She slowly picked herself up off the ground. Her wings were once again missing feathers, falling limply by her sides. Her dress was now torn and covered in dust. She began falling backwards, but Squall ran over and caught her in his arms.

Rinoa had her eyes closed, but opened them when she felt Squall's embrace. "Squall…I did it…I defeated Queen Morgana!"

Squall smiled down at her. "I know. You were incredible!" He could see tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "Rinoa, what's wrong?" He asked concerned.

"You've been freed from the curse, but now…" The tears now fell down the sides of her face into Squall's lap.

"But now what?" He asked getting worried.

"When the amulet gave me its power, it healed you, but…it…it overtook me. I can't handle the power it has anymore. It gave me what I needed to defeat Morgana, but my body can't handle it now…" Her vision began to focus in and out.

"What are you saying Rinoa?" He asked her seriously. He forced himself to hold off his tears that wanted to come out.

"I'm sorry Squall…I wanted to be with you…forever…"

"Stop talking like that!"

"I'm sorry. Just remember, I'm always with you in your heart and you'll always be in mine…I love you…ah…" Rinoa sighed and her eyes closed.

"Rinoa? RINOA!" Squall screamed out. Her body became limp and lifeless in his arms. "Don't leave me Rinoa…you said everything would be all right!" He couldn't fight back anymore. Tears began to stroll down his cheeks onto Rinoa's face.

The Amazons stood nearby, watching the horrible scene before their eyes. Squall was crouched over Rinoa's body, crying. Makita could feel her own eyes beginning to water. "It can't end like this!" She thought quietly. Choking back the tears, she walked forward and kneeled next to Squall.

"We can save her…" Makita said while placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. He looked up startled, but then his eyes grew large with hope.

"How? Tell me! I'll do anything!" Makita silenced him and then went on.

"I'm afraid you cannot…but I can."

"Why can't I?"

"You see, you have already felt and had some part of the amulet within yourself. Therefore you cannot do what needs to be done. I haven't, so I can…"

Squall remained silent for a little bit longer and then stared deeply into the Amazons eyes. "What are you going to do?" He asked her.

She stared intently back, but answered with no fear in her voice. "I will have to take the amulet's powers from her and…sacrifice myself…"

"What! You can't do that Makita!"

"Yes I can! Rinoa risked everything for us! She defeated the Queen that has destroyed my people for centuries! It's the least I can do to repay her!"

Makita looked at Squall. He had risen from the floor and was clenching his fist.

"You want her back, right?" She asked him.

"Yes…"

"You love her and want her by your side?"

"Yes…"

"Then there should be no reason for you to not want me to do this."

"There is though! You're our friend! You helped us find this place and helped us destroy her!"

"I did not help destroy her. Rinoa did that by herself. I could only watch. Now I must do my part…" She glanced over and saw a sad expression across his face. Her eyes softened. "I appreciate your concern, really I do, but this is for the greater good. Rinoa would understand." She walked forward and placed her hands on his shoulders, making Squall look up. "You have been a great friend. You're loyal, strong, and brave. Rinoa is very lucky to have someone like you in her life. Promise me that you will always protect her."

"I promise." He paused and then spoke again. "I'll miss you…we'll all miss you." Squall said as he gazed over towards the other Amazons. They all had their heads hanging low, staring at the stone floor.

Makita smiled. "I will miss you, too. You must know, I will never truly be gone. As long as you remember me, I will always remain in your heart." She saw Squall bow his head in understanding. "Thank you." Then she hugged him. Squall returned her friendly embrace.

Makita then walked towards her Amazon friends. "Amazons! You are all incredible warriors! Continue our race and fight against all evil with every ounce of strength in you! I will be watching over you always! You were all like my sisters…" The girls all had tears in their eyes. "Remember that even if it seems futile to keep trying, there will always be a way to win. The prize at the end is ultimate." The Amazons couldn't take it anymore. They all ran forward and hugged Makita, crying out.

"You'll be in our hearts Makita!" Shaltwan said through sobs.

"We'll build a statue and temple in your honor for such a noble sacrifice!" Tennetra whispered in her ear. Makita smiled and then pulled away from her friends.

"It's time…" She turned on her heel and walked over to Rinoa's cold, limp body on the floor. "It's time to wake up now Rinoa. You have too many important things to leave behind." She sat down on her knees and took a deep breath. Her eyes closed and her hands hovered above Rinoa, glowing.

"Amulet, you bestowed upon this girl your power, but she no longer needs it. Leave her now and enter a new host. She has a life that needs to be lived. To make you leave her I am sacrificing myself to your powers of greatness. Please accept my offering." She said out loud. Her hands glowed brighter.

Squall watched as little streams of power rose from Rinoa's body and into the palms of Makita's hands. The next second Makita looked over at everyone and whispered her final words. "I'll be with you…always…" Then she gasped and fell to the cold stone floor.


	23. Reborn A Princess

Chapter 23

Reborn A Princess

As soon as Makita's body had hit the ground, the other Amazons ran forward. They rolled her over onto her back, her arms by her sides. Tears were falling furiously down their cheeks. Squall closed his eyes.

"Where am I?" Rinoa thought in her mind. "Is that…Squall?" She looked up at the blurry figure above her. When her vision cleared, she managed to raise her voice to where it could be heard. "Squall?"

At hearing his name spoken, Squall looked down at Rinoa. His eyes began to tear up. "Rinoa! You're alive! It worked!" He wrapped his strong arms tightly around her. Rinoa embraced him back, not wanting him to let go of her. "I thought I had lost you forever…" He whispered in her ear.

Rinoa looked up into his face and smiled weakly. "I thought I was, too." She was silent for a minute and then looked behind her. Her eyes opened in horror. "Makita! What happened to her?" She asked in shock.

The Amazons bowed their heads and closed their eyes. Shaltwan looked at Rinoa and spoke. "She sacrificed herself…to save you." Rinoa froze.

"Why would she do that?" Rinoa screamed at the girls.

"She said that…you have a life to live and a future. You helped us defeat the Queen that destroyed our people for generations. She said it was the least she could do. She was doing her part to save you and the world from devastation…"

Rinoa fell to the ground, her hands balled into fists. "Why did you sacrifice yourself Makita? You deserved to live!" She pounded the ground till her knuckles were scraped and bloody.

Squall ran towards her and knelt down. Just as she brought her fist down to hit the ground again, he grabbed her arm, causing her to stop. "Rinoa…" He said gently. Rinoa's eyes were full of anger when she looked at him, but then they softened.

"I'm sorry Squall…I didn't mean…"

"It's okay. I'm right here with you. Everything will be alright…"

"No it won't be! Makita's dead and it's all my fault! If only I hadn't…"

Squall cut her off. "You mean if only you hadn't defeated the Queen she would still be here, alive? You're wrong Rinoa. We would all be dead. You did what was right. You followed your heart!"

Rinoa stared into his eyes and then stood up from the floor with his help. "You're right Squall. I did follow my heart. It was destiny." She brought her hand up to her face and wiped her tears away. "Besides…Makita wouldn't want me to cry over her. She did it willingly. She was a true friend that I will never forget."

Squall and Rinoa embraced once more before turning around to face the other Amazons still in tears. Rinoa walked forward. "It's alright. Makita hasn't left us. She's always in our hearts!" The girls smiled at her words and then bent down, picking up Makita in their arms.

"We should go now…" Tennetra said quietly. Everyone silently shook their heads in agreement. They turned around to face a dark portal. "Let's go…" The Amazons stepped through first, followed up by Rinoa and Squall. They were immediately transferred outside the temple, back into the dense rain forest.

"Let us head back to the village…" Shaltwan said. The group made their way through the trees till they came to the lever hidden behind some leaves. Shaltwan lifted the cover and pulled it down. The door to the village opened with a loud groan of old, rotting wood. Then they walked forward, into the home of the strong and beautiful, Amazon Warriors.

As they walked through, many villagers ran outside their straw houses. When they came out, they made two lines that reached a tent at the end. As Tennetra and Shaltwan walked by with Makita, they knelt down to the soft, brown dirt. Tennetra opened the door of the tent and they carried Makita over to a bed of feathers. Rinoa and Squall were speechless. Nothing that they could say seemed like it would make them feel any better.

"She will rest here until we can make proper burial arrangements…" Tennetra said with no emotion in her voice. Rinoa could tell that they were both trying to fight off their tears that wanted so badly, to come out.

"Why don't we all get some rest…?" Shaltwan said quietly. "We've been through a lot…" Everyone agreed. Rinoa followed the other two girls to another hut while Squall followed a man towards a different one.

A few hours later…

Rinoa woke up and looked around the room. Tennetra and Shaltwan were also stirring. They rose up from their beds and walked towards the door. Rinoa jumped up to follow them. "Where are you going?"

"It's time to make the arrangements for…" Just then, Squall came running towards them.

"Girls! You have to come quickly! Makita's body is gone!" He told them while trying to catch his breath.

"What!" They yelled together. They ran with Squall toward the tent they had left Makita in. Their eyes all opened with dread.

"I can't believe this! Why would anyone do something as horrible as this? I don't understand!" Tennetra cried out. Rinoa ran over to her side a placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry! We'll find out what happened! I promise you!" Rinoa said in a serious tone. The room grew silent. Just as Rinoa was about to say something, there was a large wail. "What was that?" She asked.

"That sounded just like…" Shaltwan began to say.

"A BABY!" Tennetra yelled jumping up and out of the tent. Everyone followed right behind her. Once outside, Tennetra motioned for them to be silent. They listened closely. Within a few seconds there was a second wail. "It seems to be coming from over there!" She whispered to the group. Her finger pointed at a clump of bushes on the far left side of the tent.

They quietly snuck forward till the crying sound was right in front of them. Tennetra slowly pulled the branches apart from the bush a peered behind it. "Oh my gosh!" She cried out, startling everyone and making them jump.

"What is it?" Shaltwan asked.

"Look!" Tennetra bent down and struggled for a minute, but came back up with a small baby girl wrapped in her arms. Everyone gasped.

"I don't believe it!" The Amazon said quietly to herself. "How is this possible?"

"How is what possible?" Rinoa asked curiously.

"This is no ordinary baby! This is…" She stopped, her voice trembling.

"Who is it?" Rinoa pressed on.

"This is Makita!" Tennetra said.

"What? Are you sure? How is that even possible? She died!" Rinoa was so confused now. This just didn't make any since at all!

"I'm not sure!" The Amazon yelled back. Rinoa was a little startled by her attitude, but recovered quickly. Shaltwan bent forward and picked the baby up in her arms. The baby's blanket fell off and hit the ground, spread out. Everyone stopped breathing. On the blanket was writing.

"What does that say?" Rinoa asked.

"It is the language of our people!" Shaltwan said in amazement. "Read it Tennetra…"

Tennetra nodded her head and then looked intently down at the writings. It looked like strange symbols to Rinoa. "It is a story…"

"A story?" Squall asked listening closely.

"Yes. A young, strong warrior was helping her people survive the dangers of life. Then another girl came along in need of help. With kindness, the warrior agreed. She set off with her friends and the girl to the Temple of legend, 'The Temple of Light.' There they fought a heroic battle till an evil Queen was destroyed for eternity. Although the Queen was killed, one was not safe. The mysterious girl could not handle the power given to her and passed away. The warrior did not want this girl's life to be ended so young, so she sacrificed herself, to save her."

Tennetra stopped to catch her breath and then continued.

"In doing so, the power was transferred to her. But, because of her noble sacrifice, the Gods wish for her to live on; for she has shown strength, wisdom, and loyalty to friends. Theses are traits that are not to be ignored. Therefore, she was reborn, but along with her rebirth, was given the power of what she sacrificed herself with. The Amulet's power now lies forever within her body for eternity. With this power she could bring great destruction, or maintained peace. She chose to stay with her people, to protect them for future generations. This is the day to be celebrated; for it is the day of rebirth for Princess Makita!"

Everyone was silent for a moment. Then Tennetra stood up and turned to face the others. Her face was streaked with tears again, but happy ones this time. "She's still here…She's a baby, but she'll grow up to be the same Makita!"

"She remembered us! She chose to stay here to protect the village!" Shaltwan said with a trembling voice.

"Makita…thank you for everything you did for me…for all of us!" Rinoa said as she brushed her hand against the baby's small face. "You're a great friend." Rinoa could feel her own tears of joy beginning to fall. She smiled as she wiped them away.

Squall placed a hand on her shoulder and spoke to the girls. "I guess that means we'll need to make new arrangements, the celebrating kind!" He said, a grin spreading across his face.

That night, a huge fire was blazing in the middle of the village. People were wearing their best clothes, and dancing around, beads jangling along. A long table had been set up with mounds of food. There were fruits of all kind and freshly caught meat, courtesy of the Amazons.

Tennetra and Shaltwan were dancing around the fire with baby Makita. They had on skirts that went to their knees that were a tan-see-through color, shorts underneath. The top was green and showed their stomachs. It had one shoulder strap and then went under the arm. A rope was tied around their waists. On their heads they wore crowns made from straw that just went in a circle. Makita was laughing happily, the firelight sparkling in her eyes.

Squall sat off to the side. Even he was forced to wear Amazon clothes. His pants were a dark tan, with a rope around his waist. He wore no shirt but had two leather straps around the top of each arm. The Amazon men had to paint their chest for such an occasion, so Squall had two strange symbols painted on with red paint.

Rinoa looked at herself in the mirror before heading out for the celebration. "I tried, but no excuse could get me out of wearing this…" She sighed. Some pieces of her hair had been braided and brought to the back. Her skirt was the same length as the other girls, but light blue-see-through. Her top tied around the back of her neck, showing her stomach. It was also blue. A leather strap was tied around her right arm while fancy jewelry was around her neck, ankles, and wrists. "I feel so exposed in this…At least there are shorts under this skirt; I mean it is see-through after all." She glanced one more time and then walked out of the tent.

"This is kind of boring…" Squall said silently to himself. He sighed and continued to watch the villagers dancing around the burning flames. As he looked around at all the people, his mouth dropped. Rinoa had walked out in her celebration outfit. She appeared to be looking for someone.

"I see Shaltwan, Tennetra, and baby Makita, but where is Squall?" She thought. Her eyes scanned through all the people. "Like this helps any! All the guys are wearing the same thing!" At long last when she almost gave up hope she saw a figure sitting a little farther away from the fire. "Aha! There he is!" She walked over towards him.

Squall could see Rinoa approaching him. He stood up and brushed the dirt off his clothes. "Nice outfit!" He heard a female voice say. He looked up to see Rinoa standing in before him. He glared at her.

"It's not like I had a choice. They put it on me before I could stop them! They even made me get symbols painted on!" He said while pointing at his red paint.

Rinoa was giggling. "I know! I didn't have a choice either. They said it's too big of an occasion to wear just normal clothes!" Rinoa paused for a minute. "Hey, at least you don't have to wear a practically see-through skirt!"

"You have a point. I might look kind of scary in that." Squall said with a serious voice. Rinoa closed her eyes and created a mental picture of Squall wearing her skirt and top. Then she burst out laughing. Squall couldn't hold it in either. They were both holding their stomachs.

"Ah, that was a good one Squall!" Rinoa said, finally able to talk. "But in my opinion…" She walked a little closer to him. "I think you look really good." Squall smirked.

"My thoughts exactly…" Squall said, making Rinoa blush furiously. They had edged closer. Their faces were almost touching when baby Makita suddenly crawled over and grabbed Squall's legs. She grabbed his pants and began pulling on them. "Hey, stop that! You're going to pull my pants down!" Squall said, raising his voice a little. Baby Makita just smiled and laughed.

Squall couldn't stay mad at the little girl. He gently scooped her up in his arms and cradled her. "That's a good little girl! Now you make sure you listen to Shaltwan and Tennetra! They'll teach you everything you need to know to become a strong warrior!" He brought his hand up towards her small face, which could have easily covered it. Then he tickled her stomach making her laugh, her little hands flying through the air.

Rinoa stood next to him and watched. "That's so cute. He's so gentle with her. It's like a whole other side of him I've never seen before. He will be a great father one day. Wait…what am I thinking?" She thought quietly, blushing. "I think she likes you Squall!" Rinoa said to him laughing.

Squall looked over at Rinoa and laughed as well. "Yeah maybe, but I think she likes you better!"

"Me?" Rinoa asked him, raising her eyebrow.

"Yeah!" Rinoa looked at Makita. Sure enough, she had her little arms stretched out, trying to reach her. "Here, she wants you to hold her." He said. Carefully, he placed her in Rinoa's arms.

Rinoa stared down at the baby Makita in her arms. "You're such a cute little girl did you know that?" She asked her smiling. Makita giggled and made some cries of joy. "I think she wants to dance!" Rinoa exclaimed. Shaltwan and Tennetra ran over to them.

"It's time for a second dance with our favorite baby girl!" Shaltwan said loudly. She gently picked Makita up out of Rinoa's arms and ran back to the fire.

"Come on you two! You have to dance, too!" Tennetra grabbed Rinoa and Squall's hands and dragged them towards the blazing fire, where a group of villagers were playing instruments. The music began.

Rinoa turned toward Squall and smiled. "Come on Squall! You've danced with me before! Don't let me down now!" Squall smiled and grabbed her hand.

"I wouldn't want to do that now would I?" Rinoa smiled at his comment. They weaved in and out of other villagers, till they found some room. Then they started dancing.

About an hour later, everyone sat down at the table for the feast. Once they were settled, Tennetra stood up to make a toast. "We are here on this glorious night, to celebrate the rebirth of one warrior who was dear to us all! She was there in our times of need, and will now continue to be there. Now, we must protect her more than ever though. Now, she is Princess Makita, the keeper of the Amulet's power! To Princess Makita!"

"To Makita!" Everyone said together, clinking their glasses of juice. After they emptied their cups, they were refilled. Shaltwan brought out the large ham and sliced it right down the middle. Hot steam billowed out from the inside, a savoring smell streaming through the air.

Another hour later, the fire's light was less intense and people were heading back to their houses. Tennetra and Shaltwan had left to put baby Makita to bed. A few villagers were staying behind to help clean up after the feast.

Off to the side of the fire sat Rinoa and Squall. "The stars look beautiful tonight…" Rinoa said through the still night air. Squall looked at her face, the firelight dancing across it. "Don't they?" Rinoa asked him.

"Huh…oh yeah, they do…" He said quickly snapping out of his day dream. "They're not as beautiful as you though…" Rinoa quickly turned around and punched him playfully in the shoulder.

"Stop it Squall! You're making me blush!" She began laughing. Squall smiled and laughed along too. He leaned back against a log and sighed, stretching his arms across the back of it. Without warning, Rinoa fell back and placed her self right in his arms. He looked at her for a second, and smiled.

"So, I guess we'll be heading back to Garden tomorrow, right?" She asked him.

"Yeah, probably…" To tell the truth, he hadn't even really thought about it. It seemed like ages ago that they were at school. So much had happened since then. "Rinoa I…" His voice trailed off. Rinoa's eyes were closed and her breathing was slow and steady. He smiled to himself and then gently picked her up in his arms and carried her to the tent she shared with the other Amazons.

"Goodnight Rinoa…" He placed her on her bed, pulling the bed sheets over her. Then he bent down and kissed her softly on the cheek. Without another word, he walked off towards his own tent silently, for the night.

Note: The story still isn't over yet!


	24. An Early Morning Swim

**Sorry for the long update you guys. I know it was only two weeks, but that felt like forever. I had homecoming to go to and there was a lot of Drama that went on there. Long story…I also had a lot of homework and then I had to go to work. It's been pretty hectic lately. I'm going to continue to try and put up a new chapter every weekend though. I don't work weekends! **

**Anyway, I want to say thank you to all of you who have written me reviews. I really appreciate it. I like to know your opinions and what you think I should improve on for my future stories. In fact, I'm in the process of starting two new ones at this very minute! All I can tell you is the subject, characters, and theme.**

**The first one is Final Fantasy X-2 (Tidus and Yuna) – Romance and adventure**

**The second one is Yu-Gi-Oh (Yami (Pharaoh and Tea) – Romance and adventure**

**So please check out my new stories when I post them if you're interested in them. I'll try to post the first chapters, maybe today or next weekend. Let's hope for the best! Thanks again for all of your support. There are still more chapters for this story!**

**Love Always,**

**Rikkuthief15**

Chapter 24

An Early Morning Swim

It was early morning, the sun was shining brightly through the trees, and parrots were calling to one another. Rinoa opened her eyes to the bright light that was streaming through the opening in the tent she was in. Yawning, she stood up and walked towards the entrance, stretching. She peered outside and saw Shaltwan and Tennetra cooking breakfast over a small fire.

"It's about time you woke up!" Tennetra called to her. Rinoa laughed and walked towards them.

"So, what's for breakfast?"

"Bacon…"

"Bacon? You have bacon here?" Rinoa asked in amazement.

Tennetra laughed and pointed toward a pen full of pigs.

"Oh…right…" Rinoa's stomach began to feel kind of queasy.

Tennetra took note of the shock on her face. "Don't worry. These aren't the same pigs you have back home. These are wild and violent. We have to keep the population down or they'll terrorize the village!"

"Oh, okay…" Rinoa felt a little better knowing that they weren't really innocent. "What am I thinking?" She asked herself. "I eat bacon back home and those are normal pigs! I guess I just never really thought about it…" Once the strips of meat started to cook, Rinoa forgot all her worries at the smell of it.

"That smells so good." She said sniffing the air.

"It will be ready in a few minutes…" Shaltwan said coming over to them with some fresh fruit in a bowl. Just then Rinoa realized someone was missing.

"Hey, where's Squall?" She asked.

"I think I saw him down by the river. If you follow the path over there by that tree you'll find it. It's not very far. I'd say about five minutes…" Shaltwan replied.

"Thanks!" Then Rinoa ran off toward the path.

Squall sat down next to the water's edge, his feet dangling in the water. Taking his shirt off, he dived into the cool, clear river. He closed his eyes and went under and came back up. Looking around he saw a huge waterfall at one end of the river. Around it were tall trees blowing in the gentle breeze.

"This place is so relaxing…" He thought quietly to himself. He floated effortlessly on the top, letting the water carry him with its small waves.

Rinoa sat behind a small tree and peeked behind its branches, spying on Squall. "He he!" She laughed to herself. "I wonder if I can sneak up on him…It's worth a try!" Very quietly she stole out from behind the tree and crept to the waters edge. As she edged closer, she saw his shirt on the ground. "Better yet, I can take this!" She grabbed his shirt and ran back behind her tree.

Squall opened his eyes and stood back up in the water. "What was that?" He asked himself. "I thought I heard something…" Then he looked over at the edge of the river and saw his shirt was gone. "Or someone…" He smiled. "Nice try Rinoa!" He called out.

The next second, Rinoa jumped out from behind her tree and glared at him. "That's not fair! How did you know it was me?"

"It wasn't really that hard. What person do I know would try a trick like that?" He raised his eyebrow and smirked.

"That obvious huh?"

"Yeah!" They both laughed. "You can put my shirt back now…" He said.

"Hm…I could, but I don't think I'm going to!" She said mischievously. She walked to the water's edge and wiggled the shirt back and forth through the air. "If you want it come and get it!"

Squall rolled his eyes. He walked towards Rinoa and stopped when he reached the side of the river. As he reached out to grab his shirt, she pulled it away. "Come on Squall! You know I wouldn't give it to you that easily!"

Suddenly an idea popped into Squall's head. He smiled to himself. Then he made his face change to a worried expression. "Rinoa, there's something I need to tell you…It's really important!"

Rinoa lowered the shirt a little at the look on his face. "What is it Squall?" She asked, concerned.

"Come here…" He motioned for her to lean down so he could tell her. She lowered herself towards him to listen, but instead, without warning, he grabbed her arm and pulled her into the water. She fell in with a loud splash.

When she came back up to the surface she started yelling. "I can't believe you did that Squall! That was awful!" She gave him a deathly glare. He started laughing. "It's not funny!"

"Maybe not for you, but for me it is!" He said.

"Hmph!" Rinoa turned her head up and crossed her arms. Then she turned around and splashed water all over him.

"Hey! That wasn't very nice either!" He yelled back.

"I'm just getting even! Besides, you were already wet!"

"So, that doesn't matter!" Then he reached over and dunked her into the water.

"Squall!" She struggled to say as gobs of water flooded into her mouth. He let her go, laughing. "That's not fair! You could have drowned me!"

"I would never do that and you know it!" He replied, still trying to hold back his laughter.

"Do I now? I'm not so sure…" She said holding her head towards the sky. Squall walked through the water next to her.

"If I was trying to drown you would I do this?" He grabbed her shoulder, turning her around to face him. Rinoa gasped in surprise. Before she could make a move, he had planted his lips on hers. She closed her eyes to enjoy it, but then opened them back up. Quickly, she pushed him away.

"Hey! You can't do that! That's cheating!" She said seriously. Squall seemed a little taken aback. He hung his head down low with a pout on his face. Rinoa started laughing. "Oh, you know that I can't stay mad at you! Plus, you can't steal MY pouting face! That's my method!" Squall smiled.

"Alright, the pout is yours. You win." He swam over towards the river bank and climbed out. Rinoa followed him. He reached out his hand and pulled her out of the water. Rinoa then glanced down at her hand. She was still holding his shirt, but now it was sopping wet.

"Sorry about that! I didn't mean to get your shirt wet, but it was your own fault really. I mean, you're the one who pulled me into the water with it."

"Don't worry about it. A shirt can be dried. He took his shirt from her and threw it over his shoulder. Then they followed the path back towards the Amazon village.

When they reached the village, the smell of sizzling, warm bacon reached their noses. "Something smells good…" Squall said. Rinoa smiled.

"It's bacon!" She said gleefully.

"Bacon? They have bacon in a place like this?"

"Yeah I know! I thought the exact same thing!" They walked over to Shaltwan and Tennetra. They were in the process of feeding baby Makita.

"We thought we would have to skip breakfast without you!" Shaltwan said while trying to give Makita some bacon in little pieces.

Tennetra stood up and stared at Rinoa and Squall. "Looks like someone took a little dip in the river!" She said eyeing them suspiciously.

Rinoa laughed, putting her hand on her head. "Yeah…about that. Squall's the one who did it! It's all his fault! Now my outfit from the party is all wet!"

"Hey! You started it and you know it!" Squall replied back defensively.

Tennetra and Shaltwan laughed in amusement at the bickering couple. "Come on, you should eat!" Shaltwan said holding out a plate of bacon for each. Rinoa generously accepted the food. Her mouth was watering.

"This tastes so good! It's been such a long time since I've had a normal meal!"

Baby Makita was still refusing to eat her bacon. Tennetra was just about fed up with her. "She's not eating, but she needs to…" She looked around the village for a minute, trying to think of something. Then she looked at Squall. "Hey, why don't you try to feed her? She likes you."

"Me?" He asked her. "Alright, I'll try…" He put his plate down and walked towards Makita. "Come here. That's it…" He said gently to her. Makita crawled towards him and sat on his lap. "You need to eat this. If you want to be strong like those two, then you need to." He placed a small piece of bacon in her hand. Slowly she raised it to her mouth. In a few seconds she was squealing with delight at its savory flavor.

Tennetra smiled. "I don't get it! She seems to just like you naturally!" She picked Makita up and carried her back over to Shaltwan where they continued to feed her, her breakfast.

Squall took his place back next to Rinoa once again to finish his meal.

"I'll miss them…" Rinoa said quietly, watching the Amazons.

"Yeah…" He said doing the same.

"I guess we can always come back here, can't we?" She asked, looking over at him, hope filling her heart.

Squall thought for a moment and then nodded his head. "Of course we can. Maybe they can even visit us!"

"That would be great!" She said excitedly. She was silent for a few more minutes, but then spoke again. "I guess we should start saying our good-byes."

"Yeah, we need to head back to Garden." He glanced down at her saddening face. "Don't worry…everything will be fine..." Then quietly whispered to himself, "I hope…"


	25. The Lost Airship

Chapter 25

The Lost Airship

Squall and Rinoa stood up and walked over towards their Amazon friends. Both wore sad expressions across their faces, heads bent low. As they reached Tennetra and Shaltwan, they looked up from the ground. Rinoa was first to speak.

"Tennetra…Shaltwan…It's time for us to go. We need to head back home. Every one is probably worried sick about us…" She closed her eyes, trying to hold back tears. "I'll…I'll miss you two!" She sank to the brown soil, letting her tears free.

Tennetra and Shaltwan immediately ran forward and threw their arms around her in a hug, trying to comfort her as best as they could. "Oh, Rinoa! Please don't be so upset. We'll miss you, too. Just remember, you can always come back or maybe even we could visit you in your lands!" Tennetra said.

"I'm glad we got to know you! You're a great friend. Thank you so much for everything you've done for us and our people…especially for Makita. We will tell her all that you did as she grows older to understand more about our history and your part in it." Shaltwan said with tears flowing down her face, too.

Squall stood there and watched. He wasn't really sure what to do. He was the only guy there while three girls were crying their eyes out. He thought quietly to himself, "I do feel sorry for them, I mean they are friends and now we have to leave…"

The girls finally released each other and stood up, brushing their hands across their faces to rid themselves of their tears.

"I'll never forget you!" Rinoa said, her voice trembling.

"As will we…" The Amazons replied. They smiled and looked over at Squall. "We also want to thank you for all your assistance. You will always be welcomed in this village."

Squall bowed his head, thanking them silently. "Before you leave, we have a gift that will help you on your way home…" The two women started to walk off, turning around to gesture them to follow. "Please come with us…"

Rinoa and Squall stared after them for a moment, but were soon to follow. They walked for what felt like a few miles, but stopped just before a large volcano. The Amazons turned to face the couple.

"This is Mount Kentura, it is dead now, so don't worry about it going off." It was huge, its peak reaching high into the sky for thousands of feet. "Your gift awaits, hidden inside…" Tennetra said mysteriously.

"Inside? You mean inside the volcano?" Rinoa asked curiously. Shaltwan nodded her head. Without another word, they walked into a small opening in the side, hidden by a large bush of tropical flowers.

Rinoa gasped when she entered the cave inside the volcano. "Wow…this is unbelievable!" The room was lit by hundreds, maybe even thousands of torches. Exquisite curtains hung around the walls, which had ancient paintings on them from the generations before. Golden trinkets and coins lay along the sides, shining in the firelight.

"Gold? Where did it come from?" Squall asked Tennetra.

"Long before we were born, there was a ship that came here to this island. They tried to destroy us, but we fought back with strong forces! In the end we were victorious, so we claimed their treasures…"

The group walked deeper and deeper into the cave, the light becoming less and less. Shaltwan grabbed a nearby torch on the wall and held it up so they could see the rest of the way, for down here there was no longer any light.

"Where are we going?" Rinoa asked them, beginning to shiver. She hadn't realized how cold the cave was without the warm glow from the torches.

"You will see in a moment…" They had come to a stop, before a large door. Tennetra lifted her hand from her side and placed it on the door. Then she began to speak words of another language. Suddenly the ground began to shake and rumble. Rinoa held herself up against the wall to keep from falling over. The door before them opened, slowly revealing, more darkness.

"In here your gift is resting, until you use it…" Tennetra said walking forwards, Shaltwan carrying the torch just behind her. Rinoa and Squall walked cautiously in, groping the walls, so as to not run into anything.

"We're here!" Tennetra suddenly yelled. Just then, hundreds of torches burst into life, lighting the dark room and casting shadows on the walls. "Here is the gift we present to you!" She said excitedly.

Rinoa and Squall stood there, their mouths hanging open in shock. Before them, in the middle of the room, was a humongous airship. It was silver with gold letters encrypted all along the sides of it. "Your giving that…to us?" Squall said, his eyes huge.

Shaltwan smiled. "You deserve it. You have saved every one here from Queen Morgana, it's the least we can to do repay you. Besides, we have no use for it."

"How did this thing even get here?" Rinoa asked in amazement.

Tennetra walked forward to stand next to Rinoa. "We are not quite sure ourselves. Only ourselves and Makita knew about it. We discovered it together about four years ago. We had been exploring around the volcano when she found the entrance into it. When we went inside, there was the gold and hand paintings, then as we continued farther on we came to a mysterious door. By reading the history on the walls, we were able to decipher the code to get in here. It's been like this ever since. None of us have ever touched it or gone inside…"

Squall walked up to the airship and examined it. "There should be a key…" He said while beginning to search around.

"Oh, sorry! I'll get the key!" Shaltwan said quickly. She walked towards another wall and said something, then a small block moved away to reveal a key on a red cushion. "Here you are…" She walked over to Squall and placed it gently in the palm of his hand.

"Thanks…" He slowly moved to the door on the airship and placed the golden key in the lock. When he turned it, a keypad appeared next to him, asking for a password. "Anyone here know the password?" He asked.

"Yes…" Tennetra came forward and typed strange words on the keypad. There was the sound of confirmation and then the door slid open.

"How did you know that?" Squall asked curiously.

"There was a riddle in the cave messages. I finally figured out the answer to it a few years ago. It revealed the password needed for it to operate…"

"You'll have to tell me then so that I can get in…"

"I will. Don't worry!" Tennetra said starting to laugh.

They walked onward into the passage. The inside of the airship was huge. The ceiling was about twenty feet high, large windows all along its walls. In the room a little ways ahead was the controls. The pilot seat was tall and decorated elaborately with gold, rubies encrusted in the top. The buttons on the control panel were all different colors.

Squall walked to the pilot's chair and sat down to exam the controls further. Looking closely, he saw one small red button that was covered in dust. Slowly he lifted his hand, pressing it down with his index finger. Suddenly a bright light filtered throughout the room. Squall closed his eyes, shutting out the light. Seconds later he opened them again only to see a hologram standing in the room.

It was woman. She had long brown hair, blue eyes, and tanned skin. Her skirt went to her feet and her top hugged her tightly, showing off her strong, muscular arms and stomach. Her clothing was a rich dark blue, a golden crown on her head. Squall sat there, his mouth open.

"I wonder what Squall's doing?" Rinoa said quietly to herself. She walked forward into the control room, followed by Tennetra. As they walked in together, they stopped before the hologram, eyes wide. The hologram turned to face the group of people now in the room and began to speak.

"I welcome you to the Argona airship. I am Queen Markana. I ruled the kingdom known as Argona, until it fell. That's when I came here. I created the legendary warriors, the beautiful, the strong, and the wise. The Amazons! My own dear child is the first…my dear Makita!"

Everyone in the room gasped. They couldn't believe what they were hearing. They just listened.

"Although, she was the first, she did not become the first to live an Amazon life. I cast her into a silent slumber for one hundred years. For I knew one day, a great destiny would unfold for my darling daughter. This airship belongs to me, and my people. If anyone is listening to this, I ask of you to please, protect my dear Makita. I am no longer alive myself, so as my gift to you, use this airship in your journey."

"I don't believe it!" Tennetra whispered quietly. "That's Makita's mother! My mother! We all descended from her! That's why we're here alive today!" Tears began to fall down her cheeks.

"My dear children…do not be sad, for this is the day of a new beginning, of a new chapter of you lives. You must fight for your kingdom, your people, and your friends. I am always with you. There are many battles that lie ahead in the future, but you will be ready to face them…"

The hologram began to flicker. It was loosing power. Soon, the queen would be gone…forever.

"I only have a short time left. My prayers are with you all. Protect the world and keep the evil out of the light. Always stand by your friends and trust in one another. The fate of the planet and life itself depends on it."

"Before I go…I have one last wish. I wish to tell my other three darling daughters, how much I love them. My dear Tennetra, you were a strong little girl when you were younger, but then I had to cast you into an enchanted slumber as well as the others. Shaltwan was always smiling and wanting to make friends. Reliquan always wanted attention and leadership. I love you all my darling daughters. I'm with you always and forever in your hearts…"

With those last words said, the holographic image disappeared. No one spoke. Shaltwan was beside Tennetra, her head bent low, crying. Tears fell from their faces to the floor.

"We had been there beside her before…when we were younger…if only we remembered! She saved us. That was the time in which the evil sorceress arose and destroyed our people. She must have fought along with everyone else and been destroyed! She did all of that…for us…"

Rinoa knelt down beside the two girls and placed her hands on their shoulders to try and calm them. "It's okay. Don't be hurt or upset. She did a noble thing. She gave up her own life, which is the ultimate sacrifice. We should not feel pity and sorrow for her. Her heart was strong, she was brave, and never gave up her dreams…"

"Rinoa…" Squall said in a low voice. Rinoa looked across the room at him and closed her eyes.

"She would not want them to go on like this. She wants them to be happy and fulfill their life to its fullest. Her dream is for them to protect the beautiful place she created and the people. She lives happily now…"

Tennetra looked deeply at Rinoa. Her tears began to lessen.

"She's watching over you everyday…" Rinoa said gently. Tennetra picked herself up off the floor and stood up tall.

"You're right…We have to be strong for her. She was strong and brave. We shall follow in her footsteps and help protect her dreams…Right Shaltwan?"

Shaltwan wiped her tears away from her blue eyes. Slowly, she drew herself up straight as well. "Yes…of course. We will make our mother, the ruler of the Amazons, proud!"

Rinoa smiled at them. Tennetra then said something else in their language. The sound of a roaring engine came to life. The ship began to tremble and shake. The controls lit up and computer screens of maps materialized onto screens.

"The ship is now ready to fly. Please take it and do whatever you chose. It is yours…" Tennetra bowed down slightly. "We are in your debt for saving us and the world."

"Thank you…" Squall said. "I still need one more thing though…"

"What's that?" She asked him.

Squall scratched the back of his head. "I need to know the words you spoke so I can start the ship…"

"Oh, that's right! Well, how about this. What if Shaltwan were to go with you?"

"What!" Rinoa and Squall yelled at the same time.

Shaltwan looked a little shocked as well. Tennetra just smiled, and then she turned to face her sister. "Shaltwan, I know you have always dreamed of seeing the world…now is your chance!"

"I have to protect Makita though! It's my duty as an Amazon!" She said in a whisper.

"There are many others who can protect her. Besides, you can come back anytime you want. There will always be a place for you here. Plus, then you could tell us of your travels and adventures!"

The blonde was silent for a few minutes, letting all these details go through her mind one at a time. Finally, she looked up. "Do you really mean it? It would really be alright?"

"Of course!"

"Oh, thank you Tennetra! You are truly a great warrior and sister! I will never forget this. One day I will repay you!" She jumped forward and hugged Tennetra in a sisterly embrace.

"It's settled then. I shall stay here on the island to guard my people while Shaltwan journeys with you back to your homeland! She will be able to start the ship."

"Sounds good to me." Squall replied. Rinoa nodded in agreement.

"Well, I guess this is good-bye…" Tennetra said, a sad tone taking over.

"No it's not!" Rinoa said with a large grin. "We'll see each other again before you know it!"

"Your right!" A smile lifted up across her face. "Good-bye then. You are all welcome here at anytime. I wish you luck on your travels!" With that said, she turned on her heel and walked out the door. They watched out the large windows till they saw her standing inside the cave, just beside the airship.

"Let's get this thing moving!" Shaltwan said. She jumped into the pilot's seat and pressed some buttons, causing the ship to shake even more. They felt it begin to hover above the ground. With one last look, Rinoa waved at Tennetra. Then the roof above opened slowly, daylight filtering through the darkness. Within seconds, the ship was a tiny speck in the light blue sky.

"Good luck my friends! I hope you make it back safely!" Then Tennetra walked out of the room and locked it with her secret codes of Amazon.

Note: There's still more to come…


	26. A Forgotten Enemy

Chapter 26

A Forgotten Enemy

"This is so awesome!" Rinoa exclaimed, jumping up and down in excitement. She had her face pressed against the large window in the large dome area in the center of the airship. "I've never flown in one of these before!"

Shaltwan, who was standing nearby, began to laugh at Rinoa's childlike actions.

"Hey! It's true!" Rinoa said defensively.

"I believe you, don't worry!" She replied, still giggling slightly. Rinoa glared at her, but then joined in on the joke.

"Okay, I admit I sound a little childish!"

"A little?"

"Okay, a lot!" The two laughed again.

After their laughter subsided, Shaltwan turned and left for the control room. "The ships on autopilot, but I better make sure it's still on the right course."

"Alright."

Shaltwan walked into the room full of the glow from five large computer screens. She glanced around the room. "I wonder where Squall went off to…" She sighed and sat down at the navigation desk, to make sure their coordinates were precise.

The sky was a deep blue. The sun had dropped below the horizon, blanketing the world in its dark velvet. The stars twinkled high up in the sky, the moon reflecting off the ocean water beneath the airship. They had stopped it, for they needed rest and the ship needed someone to watch its course. Due to it's age, it would veer off in the wrong direction a few times.

A dark figure leaned against the railing on one of the balconies leading off the ship's side, their hair blowing slightly in the gentle sea breeze.

"So many things have happened in the past two months…" Squall thought as he gazed out over the sparkling ocean waves in the moonlight. "I've changed…" There was no sound except for the waves crashing into one another. "It all started when she showed up…" He closed his eyes and pictured the brown haired girl in his mind. Hearing footsteps, he turned around quickly.

"What are you up to?" It was Rinoa.

"Nothing…"

"Really? That's cool…" They sat in silence.

"Rinoa…"

"Yes?" She looked up immediately at the sound of her name.

"Why?"

"Why what?" She asked in confusion.

"Why did you…like me?" There was an awkward silence after his question.

"Well…I don't know, things happened…"

"I just don't get it though. I was so cold and mean to you…How could you possibly like someone with that kind of personality?" He raised his voice a little at his last words.

"Squall! Yes, I admit I didn't really like you at first, but then…you changed. You saved me twice. When I was hurt, when you held me close to you in your arms, I admitted to myself how safe I felt. There was something about you and I wanted to get closer to you to find out what it was!"

Squall remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

"I devised a plan to visit you that night. I ended up finding your ring instead, but it still worked out well in the end. After the next few days, I found myself getting more drawn to you. It felt like you were something every girl wanted, but only I could break in and get the key to unlock your secrets. I had to let you know my feelings! They were growing stronger and stronger! My heart felt like it would burst!"

He had finally turned around to face her.

"At your birthday party, when I kissed you, I felt as free as a bird. My feelings were there for you and everyone to see! Then, when you kissed me of your own accord, my heart wanted to jump out of my chest. It felt like I was flying, it was so perfect. I felt like nothing could go wrong as long as I was with you…"

Rinoa stopped, her voice starting to tremble a bit. Just as she felt a tear wanting to fall, she felt a hand caressing her cheek. Squall was looking deeply at her.

"Things did go wrong…" He said into the silent night air.

"Yes, things did, but we are here together again, and that's all that matters…" She whispered. There were a few more moments of silence. "Well, it's getting late. I think I'll get some rest. Good-night!" She leaned forward and gently pecked him on the cheek. "I'll see you in the morning…"

Squall watched her as she walked away, until no longer visible. Once gone, he turned back to watching the ocean waves and occasional fish breaking through the surface.

Rinoa walked towards her closet. She shuffled through the clothes till she found her usual blue shorts with a silk blue tank top. "Finally some peace and quiet! It's about time I can get some actual sleep…" She closed her eyes, resting her head gently on her pillow.

"That's right…peace and quiet…" A deep voice said slowly from the corner of the room. Rinoa's eyelids fluttered open.

"Who's there?" She said, her heart speeding up.

There was no answer. Then, out of nowhere, a hand covered her mouth with a rag. Once breathing in the drug on it, her eyes began to focus in and out. "Squall…help…" She mumbled into the cloth. Quietly, she was carried away into the darkness.

The orange sun rose above the horizon, lighting up the windows in the airship. Squall turned over on his side and looked at the clock on the table next to him. It read 6:52 AM. "I better get up…" He said quietly to himself. He got off the bed and walked towards the chair that had his white tank top. Pulling it over his head, he left the room.

As he walked down the hallway that led to the control room he made a left. Stopping in front of a large metal door, he listened. "I guess Rinoa's still sleeping…" He couldn't heart any sign of movement. Slowly he opened the door.

"Rinoa…are you up?" Her room was still dark, making it hard to see. He stumbled across the room and flipped the light switch on. As he turned around, his heart stopped. Rinoa was gone! "Rinoa? Rinoa!" He yelled out her name.

Shaltwan heard loud screams in the outside hallway of her room. She sprung out of bed and ran out the door. "That sounds like Squall!" She raced forward as fast as her legs would carry her. In seconds she had reached the entrance of Rinoa's room. "Squall! What is it?" She asked, gasping for air.

"Rinoa! She's gone!" His eyes were full of anger and hatred.

"Gone? How? Who took her?"

"I don't know who…" His voice trailed off. He spotted a small piece of paper in the fold of her sheets. Picking it up, he unfolded it and began to read.

"Squall,

Your precious Rinoa is with me for the moment. I bet your insides are just ripping themselves apart at your sorrow. Anyway, if you ever want to see her again, then meet me at the Centra Ruins at six o'clock tonight…or else…"

Squall brought his gaze up from the letter, staring into space. "Who's it from?" Shaltwan asked, her curiosity mounting. He didn't answer at first, but looked down at the name scrawled quickly in black ink.

"Seifer…"


	27. Eternal Rivals

**Note: I've realized how everyone is confused about how Seifer got on the airship, so I'm going to try and explain it. Okay, as you know, they were in the middle of the ocean, but the ship wasn't moving. Seifer himself had his own airship, but his had an invisibility stealth mode. It was a special Galbadian airship. Anyway, so he crept up on them and snuck onboard, hiding himself in Rinoa's room, ready to set his plan into action.**

**I know, I'm sorry everyone. I really should have put all that in the story. Sorry about that. I promise I'll do better next time and keep you less confused. Thanks for letting me know your questions and thanks for all the support and reviews. You guys are an awesome audience!**

Chapter 27

Eternal Rivals

"So who's Seifer?" Shaltwan asked Squall as he polished his gunblade.

"He's an arrogant, stubborn fool who'll do anything for attention or pride. All he cares about is power and himself."

Shaltwan sat quietly watching him now sharpening his blade. His strokes were hard. He was having trouble controlling his temper. "If he touches her I'll…"

"Relax Squall…I'm sure she'll be fine. Rinoa's strong and can defend herself for a while. I mean, she did defeat Morgana…What could this Seifer do?"

"He can do just about anything he wants! He's kidnapped her before. That time…he…he…"

"He what?"

"He kissed her! That wasn't the only time. Before that, he had kissed her already, but I had saved her from him…"

"He kissed her! I'm sorry Squall. That must have been terrible to watch…" She stood up and walked to his side. "Don't worry. You'll save her. I know it. She would never stop loving you for him."

Squall put down his polishing rag and tucked his gunblade into his belt. "I'm going…I'll be back with her…soon."

"You can do it, but be careful!" Squall nodded his head. Then, turning on his heel he walked out the door and towards the Centra Ruins.

"It won't be long now…" Seifer was pacing back and forth across the cold, stone floor of the castle in the middle of the ruins, in the tallest tower. "This will be my moment of triumph!" He curled his hand into a fist, smirking. "Come along now Squall, I won't bite!"

"You won't defeat him!" A female voice rang out from the corner of the room. Rinoa was chained to a chair. She was gritting her teeth, trying to raise her power up to what it was when she was fighting the Queen.

"Don't even bother to try. You're still too weak to fight back."

Rinoa squeezed her eyes shut, hoping that what he said was not true. In the end, she knew her attempts were futile. "I hope Squall gets here, and fast!"

"This is it." Squall stood at the foot of the Centra Ruins. There were crumbling buildings everywhere, a large castle in the center. "There's the Castle of Odin, where Seifer is." He stepped forward, into the ruins, his mind set forth on only one destination, only one goal, to save the woman he loved.

Up in the castle, a large sphere appeared, with a picture in the center. It showed Squall walking. "Ah, he's finally here and right on time…" He smiled wickedly, then turned and walked to the far wall where his own gunblade lay resting.

"This blade has won many battles for me…and it will continue to. Nothing will stand in my way of fulfilling my dreams!"

"In case you don't remember, Squall beat you last time!"

"Excuse me, but did I ask for you to speak?" He walked towards her and slapped her across the face. "You will speak only when asked! Besides, I only lost because I thought I would let him think that he was strong enough to beat me!" Rinoa glared at him. Her cheek was red and stung from where he slapped her, but she remained silent.

"I have to hurry!" Squall thought to himself. He was running up a tall, spiraling staircase. After what felt like he had gone up fifty floors, he finally saw a doorway. "There it is!" With one last push of his leg, he burst through the door.

Seifer turned around at the sudden noise on the other side of the room. Seeing Squall, he smiled. "It's about time you showed up. I thought I was going to have to come get you!"

"Let Rinoa go!"

"I don't think so! I'm not letting you get her that easily. I have a score to settle with you!"

"Oh really?"

"Yes, and I think you know what I have in mind!" Seifer pulled his gunblade out. Squall drew his from his belt, holding it in front of him.

"Rinoa, are you alright?" Squall asked, not taking his eyes from Seifer.

"I'm fine!" She yelled back.

"What did I tell you about speaking without my consent!" Seifer faced his palm at Rinoa and shot lightning bolts across the room at her. She cried out, her head falling to her chest.

"How dare you!" Squall screamed at him. Seifer laughed.

"That's right Squall! Let your anger fight for you! Most people lose control and become careless when they do, just like you!"

Squall stopped himself. "That's right!" He thought. "I can't let my anger overtake me! I won't be fooled. I have to calm down and concentrate!"

"Are you ready? I want to face you at your full strength!"

"Let's get this over with!"

"Now, now, don't be so pushy. I've waited a very long time for this moment and now it has finally come! This will be the day that I destroy you once and for all!"

"I don't think so!"

"No one cares what you think!" Seifer smiled. "Well then, let's go!"

Both men sprang forward, gunblades drawn. There was a clash when they met. They pulled apart and then attacked again. Sparks flew from the sharp blades. "This is your end!" Seifer twirled his sword through the air. It broke into Squall's sleeve, cutting his arm.

"Is that all you got?" He asked him, smiling.

"No, I'm just getting warmed up!" Seifer lunged out at him, aiming at Squall's chest. Squall through his blade up and blocked the onslaught. Just as Seifer pulled his sword back, Squall grazed the side of his leg.

"Not bad. You actually caused a bit of damage." Squall could tell Seifer was enjoying this. The two fought on. Rinoa couldn't stand to watch it. She wanted so badly to shut her eyes, but her heart just wouldn't let her.

"Please let Squall be the victor!" She thought pleadingly. "If he doesn't win then Seifer will…will…Stop it! I can't think like that! Squall will win! He will be victorious!" She looked across the room at the two frantically moving figures. Seifer was cut on his arms and legs. Squall was cut all over. His arms were bleeding, along with a cut across his chest. Rinoa could feel tears welling up inside.

Squall was tiring quickly. He still hadn't fully recovered from his battle against the Queen. Seifer was slightly worn down as well, but not as much. With one quick slide of his foot, Seifer knocked Squall's feet out from under him, causing him to fall onto his back. Squall cried out in pain.

"Your time has ended!" Seifer placed his gunblade's tip at his opponent's throat. "It's been fun. I must admit, you were my toughest enemy, but in the end, you couldn't handle the power of the handsome, strong Seifer Almasy!" He threw his head back in laughter. It rang around the walls of the castle eerily.

"Oh no!" Rinoa screamed in her mind. "This can't be happening! Squall, please! Get up!" Her tears were falling down her face now, wild and free.

"I have to do something! Fast!" Ideas raced through Squall's head. His life was on the line. He had to survive! He closed his eyes and thought one thought, deeply in his mind. It was a call for help. Help from the legendary guardian of the castle. Odin.

"Good-bye my friend!" Just as Seifer was about to kill the person who had been like an eternal rival to him for so many years, rain began to pour out of nowhere. "What's this? How is this possible? There is a roof above us!"

Lightning dashed across the room, followed by a low rumble of thunder. Then the ground shook. A large portal appeared, a shadowy figure emerging slowly from it. "What is that!" Seifer cried out. His sword was now by his side. Squall took this moment to crawl away from him, next to Rinoa.

Seifer couldn't move; he was speechless. Standing before him was a six-legged horse, and on top of the horse sat a man. He wore armor and had horns on his head. A flowing cape billowed behind him. "It's you! Lord Odin!"

"You have forsaken my castle dwelling! You are not worthy of being here!" Odin's voice was a low, deep grumble.

"What!" Seifer looked horrorstricken.

"You shall come with me…for ETERNITY!" Before Seifer could move, Odin had galloped over to him and picked him up off the ground by the collar of his coat. Seifer screamed. Then, in a flash of lightning, Odin galloped back through the portal, Seifer in hand. In seconds, the rain stopped and the portal was gone, along with Squall's rival.

Finally able to breath again, Squall turned to face Rinoa. Her eyes were opened wide in shock. "Are you okay?" He asked her. She couldn't speak. She just stared with her mouth open. "Rinoa?"

"Huh? Oh…I'm sorry. Yeah, I'm fine…" She finally snapped out of it. Squall took his sword and sliced the chains in half, freeing her. "Thanks…"

"It's over now…" Squall said in a low voice. Rinoa looked at him, and then gasped.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't even notice how badly you were injured!"

"It's okay. I'm fine…"

"No you're not!" She grabbed the bottom of her shirt and ripped part of it off. "Here…" In seconds she had wrapped the soft cloth around his arm, causing the bleeding to cease.

"Thanks…"

"You're welcome…" They sat quietly for a little bit, both lost in their own thoughts, till Rinoa spoke up at last. "What do you think happened to him?"

"I don't know…"

"Let's get out of here…I want to go home!" She turned to face Squall.

"I know, me too." They picked themselves off the floor and made their way to the exit. Staircase after staircase, room after room. They finally reached the entrance to the old ruins of the ancient kingdom. They turned around, with one last look at the castle. Without another word, they continued on to the airship that sat waiting a few yards away.

**Note: There is one chapter left! The big finale is next weekend!**


	28. Friendly Reunions

**This is it everyone! Thank your for all of your support. It is greatly appreciated. I really hope you enjoy this last chapter. I worked very hard trying to satisfy everyone, and I hope I did a good job. Thank you for reading my story. **

**Check out my new story I just posted this morning! It's a Yuna and Tidus! I hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 28

Friendly Reunions

The door to the airship flung open. Shaltwan ran towards the slow moving couple. "Thank goodness you're okay! I saw this weird purple cloud forming over the ruins. I thought something bad might've happened!" Rinoa and Squall stumbled forward.

"Shaltwan, can you help me carry him? He's really weak. That battle with Seifer wore him out pretty bad." The Amazon walked forward and placed Squall's arm around her neck, Rinoa on the other side. Together they were able to carry him back into the airship.

Sunlight poured out through the windows in the control room. Squall sat leaning against the back of the pilot's seat, bandages around his chest and arms. Rinoa was gazing out over the ocean the airship was crossing, watching the waves crashing into one another. Shaltwan had her back hunched over a computer, staring at a map. She turned her chair around and began speaking.

"So, this Balamb Garden, what's it like?"

Rinoa turned away from the windows smiling. "It's amazing! The building is huge and there are training centers, dorms, a cafeteria, infirmary, and hundreds of classrooms!"

"It sounds rather exciting!"

"It is!"

Shaltwan was silent for a moment, but then spoke in a shy voice. "Do you think it would be alright if I were to…maybe attend this school as you do?"

"That would be awesome! I could show you everything! You could even meet all of our friends!" Rinoa was jumping up and down.

"Thank you Rinoa. I would really like that." The girl's conversation was interrupted when Squall cleared his throat.

"Excuse me, but we better grab on to something…" He said seriously.

"What? Why?" Rinoa asked, raising her eyebrow slightly.

"Because we're about to land."

Rinoa ran back to the window and looked outside. Sure enough, Balamb had come into view. "Yes! We made it back! See Shaltwan, I told you it was big!"

_Beep! Beep! Beep!_ A man wearing a SeeD uniform looked over at his radar that was going off. At the sound, another man ran into the room. It was Zell. Ever since they had lost contact with Rinoa, they had been constantly listening and waiting for any kind of signal or sign from her. The worst part was when they discovered Squall had left. Dr. Kadowakki had yelled at Zell for an hour!

"What is it?" Zell asked hurriedly.

"There's an airship approaching the school, sir!"

"An airship?" Zell asked. Then he smiled. "It must be Rinoa and Squall! They're back!" He ran out of the room, leaving the SeeD confused.

"Hold on!" Squall said over the loud engine. The airship began to shudder violently back and forth. It was hovering over the land now. Pulling a lever down and pressing several buttons, the ship jolted; then it fell slowly to the ground. Seconds later, it made impact, the engine shutting off. "We made it."

"Oh Squall! We're finally home!" Rinoa ran over to his side and wrapped herself around his arm. "I can't wait to see everyone again! It feels like it's been an eternity!"

"I know." Squall smiled down at the brunette, and looked over at the Amazon. She stood up and walked towards them.

"I'm ready to see my new home." She said, smiling. Squall smirked and nodded his head.

"Let's go." He motioned towards the door. They all climbed down the sides of the airship and landed softly on the brown earth. "It's good to be back home." The warm sunlight blazed on their faces, the gentle breeze blowing their hair ever so slightly. Squall looked from the wide open sky to the school's entrance. "It looks like we have a welcoming committee on its way." He said with amusement in his voice.

Rinoa and Shaltwan gazed over to where Squall was staring. Sure enough, an excited looking blonde was running their way, a large group of people following him, dust blowing in their faces. "It's Zell!" Rinoa exclaimed excitedly. Within seconds, he arrived, panting in exhaustion.

"You're alive! I thought something terrible had happened to you! When we lost contact, I was freaking out!" Zell stood up straight and took a deep breath. Then he looked over from Rinoa to Squall. "Dude, you're alive, too! I thought for sure you were a goner! I mean, going off in that condition…"

"Yeah, it's good to see you too Zell." Squall said rolling his eyes.

"Aw, I didn't mean it like that!" Zell slapped him on the back. Just then the rest of the group caught up.

"RINOA!" Rinoa knew that only one person could say her name that loud and excited. Looking around she spotted Selphie. She was jumping up and down frantically. "Rinoa, I was so worried about you! I was going insane!" She ran over to the brunette and hugged her tightly. "I'm so glad you're alright!" Rinoa gasped.

"Selphie…you're…ah…squeezing too tight! I can't…breath!" Rinoa said, trying to get some oxygen into her lungs.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Selphie immediately released her. Rinoa sighed in relief. The next second, Rinoa found herself being embraced yet again, but this time by Quistis.

"Oh honey, you scared me so bad. I thought we had lost you forever!" Rinoa hugged her back and then turned to face the others. Irvine had just reached them. He smiled at her and raised his eyebrow, tipping his cowboy hat.

Everyone was silent for a few minutes until Quistis and Selphie looked over at Squall. "SQUALLY!" Selphie exclaimed loudly. At the sound of his name being said like that, Squall glanced at her, a scared look in his eyes. Before he could move, Selphie has lunged forward and hugged him. Quistis decided to join in as well. Both girls began to lecture him.

"I can't believe you would go off without a word to anyone of us! It was so terribly rude! Thank goodness you're alright. It's all thanks to Rinoa!" Quistis said in a stern voice. Rinoa, who was standing next to her, blushed slightly.

"Squall helped out a lot too!" She said defensively for him.

"What did he do?" Quistis questioned.

Rinoa closed her eyes. "It's a long story…" As she looked around at all her friends, she noticed that Zell had his mouth open, gaping at something. Following his gaze, she saw Shaltwan. Her light blonde hair was swaying in the wind, brushing the sides of her face lightly.

"Right." Rinoa thought to herself. "Hey guys, I'd like for you all to meet a good friend of mine. This is Shaltwan. She's an Amazon."

Shaltwan walked forward a little nervously. "Nice to meet you all. I hope you will all grant me the right to enroll in this school." She bowed her head, making her hair fall over her shoulders. Zell began to form a little drool on the side of his mouth.

Finally snapping out of his daydream he ran till he was about a nose away from her. "Of course you can stay! Can't she everyone? There's no problem with that! By the way, my name's Zell!" Shaltwan smiled sweetly.

"Thank you…Zell." Hearing his own name come out of her mouth he just about fainted. Rinoa rolled her eyes.

The golden-orange sun was slowly falling below the horizon. The clouds blended together forming colors of purple and pink. Rinoa leaned against the balcony railing of Balamb Garden, on the second floor. The only sounds audible was the whistling wind and occasional bird.

Suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed Rinoa's shoulder. She turned around quickly, ready to fight. It was Squall. "Oh, it's you." She sighed with relief.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He said gently. Walking forwards, he leaned on the rail and watched the sunset.

"I never thought I'd be back here again. All my friends around…"

"I know. Everything feels like a passing dream."

Rinoa suddenly burst out laughing. "What's so funny?" Squall asked confused.

"I just remembered the look on Selphie's face when we told her all that had happened! It was great! I'm never going to forget it! Her eyes were like the size of the dinner plate!" Squall smiled and laughed along. Rinoa loved his laugh. It was deep, but gentle. Those were the qualities she loved most. He seemed so cold on the outside, but on the inside he was really just a normal guy.

Their laughter died down minutes later. The couple watched the sun as it sank ever lower. "After all this time we can finally move on with our lives." She said in a distant voice. Squall gazed over and into her dark brown eyes.

"We can, but some of us with new people to go on with…" Rinoa quickly looked up at him. He was doing that famous smirk she loved.

"Thank you…" She whispered.

"………."

"You stayed with me all this time, even at the risk of loosing your own life. No one has ever done that for me…" She was cut short when Squall placed his finger on her lips. She gazed into his deep blue eyes.

"I should be thanking you. If you hadn't come along, I would still be the person I was then. When I met you, I figured you were just like all the other girls, but you're not. There's something about you. You're full of surprises. Besides, you know I would stay by your side no matter what the odds were. Nothing can come between us."

"Oh Squall!" Rinoa wrapped her arms tightly around him, burying her face in his leather jacket. "I never want you to let go of me!" She said, her voice muffled by his coat.

"I won't…" He replied. Just then, a little brunette with flipped out hair peeked around the corner, along with Irvine.

"Get a room you two!" Selphie said giggling. Irvine whistled.

"Stop spying on us Selphie!" Rinoa yelled. Selphie got the point and grabbed Irvine's hand, running for her life, leading him along like a helpless puppy.

Rinoa turned back around to face Squall. He walked closer to her, smiling. "What?" She asked. He had that mischievous look in his eyes.

"Now, where were we?" He asked her. Rinoa smiled. He lifted her chin up and leaned closer to her. Their lips pressed against one another gently. She wrapped her arms around the back of his neck, leaning in closer to him, deepening the kiss. She felt like an ice cream cone melting on a hot summer day. They pulled away slowly, not wanting the moment to end.

"I love you Squall! I love you so much!" She whispered in his ear.

"I love you too Rinoa." They kissed one more time and then continued to watch the sunset until darkness fell over the vast expanse before them. "We better go, it's getting late."

"Okay." Rinoa agreed.

As they walked back into the Garden, they saw Zell and Shaltwan sitting on a bench. Zell was talking really fast and moving his hands around in the air, demonstrating a battle. Shaltwan was giggling, her hand over her stomach.

"He doesn't waste anytime. Does he?" Squall asked sarcastically.

Just as Rinoa was about to reply, Shaltwan got off the bench and walked towards Zell. He stopped and looked at her. Shocking practically everyone, especially Zell, she leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the cheek. Zell's eyes were huge.

"Apparently, she doesn't either!" Rinoa said, laughing. Shaltwan grabbed Zell's hand and ran off pulling him along. Rinoa and Squall were left alone in the hallway. "Come on, let's go." Rinoa wrapped her arm in Squall's and marched off down the corridor with him.

When they reached the dorms, Rinoa ran towards her door and opened it. "Look, its fixed back to the way it was before Crystal messed it up!" She ran into the room and jumped onto the bed, laying her head back onto the soft pillows. Squall watched her for a few seconds, but then began to walk away. "Wait! Where are you going?" She asked.

"My room…"

"Don't go yet! I need…" Her voice trailed off.

"You need what?" He asked her suspiciously. Rinoa smiled and then placed her hands on her hips.

"I need a bedtime story!"

Squall stumbled. "You're joking right?" He asked.

"Of course not! Now come back in here right now and tell me a story! Then you can go get your beauty sleep your highness!" She said curtseying.

Squall sighed, but walked back into the room. "Fine…" He sat down on her bed and crossed his arms. Rinoa smiled triumphantly and placed her head on her pillow next to him. "What story do you want me to tell you?"

"Um…how about the one where there was a beautiful princess with brown hair and a handsome prince with a gunblade! They fought a tough battle, but defeated the Queen in the end! Does it ring a bell?" She asked, yawning.

Squall smiled. "Oh, that one. Yeah, I think I've heard of it." Rinoa smiled and then placed her head on his shoulder. Squall started the story, his deep voice comforting her.

About thirty minutes later, just as he was reaching the part where the girl destroyed the Queen, he heard deep breathing. Looking down, he saw Rinoa with her eyes closed, fast asleep. He smiled to himself. Gently, he moved her head so as not to wake her and pulled her comforter back. Pulling the thick blanket around her, he leaned down and kissed her gently on the lips.

"Goodnight my princess…" He whispered. He brushed his hand across her soft, smooth face. "I love you now and always. No matter where you are you will remain a part of me. I am your knight and I will always protect you."

**Well, that's it! Please leave me a review on your experience reading my whole story. Thank you so much everyone! I love you guys! (Tears…) I'm sad myself that it's the end of the story, but it has to end sometime! Thank you!**


End file.
